New Delhi | The BJP Tuesday announced nine candidates for the September 3 Rajya Sabha bypolls, fielding Union ministers Ravneet Singh Bittu from Rajasthan and George Kurian from Madhya Pradesh.
The party fielded former BJD leader Mamata Mohanta from Odisha and ex-Congress leader Kiran Choudhary from Haryana. Both these leaders joined the BJP recently.
According to a list of nine candidates released by the BJP, Manan Kumar Mishra will contest the bypolls from Bihar, Dhairyashil Patil from Maharashtra and Rajib Bhattacharjee from Tripura.
Bhattacharjee is the president of the BJP's Tripura unit.
The ruling party has fielded Mission Ranjan Das and former Union minister Rameswar Teli as its candidates from Assam.
Elections to 12 vacant Rajya Sabha seats in nine states will be held on September 3.
Ten of these seats fell vacant as the sitting members, including Union ministers Piyush Goyal, Sarbananda Sonowal and Jyotiraditya Scindia, were elected to the Lok Sabha.
Bypolls are also being held for two seats in Telangana and Odisha.
Jaipur | Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra on Tuesday said the party will not field its candidate for the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll in the state.
He said the party believes in democracy unlike the BJP, which he claimed indulges in "sabotaging and horse trading" of elected representatives.
"We do not depend on slips like them (BJP). The BJP has full majority for the selection of a Rajya Sabha candidate. We believe in democracy. We do not believe in sabotage and horse trading. Therefore, whoever the BJP fields, he will be elected unopposed," Dotasra said.
He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's birth anniversary event.
Dotasra targeted the Centre, saying the Constitution, democracy and reservation is in danger. He alleged the people in power are working only for "grabbing chair", adding central agencies are being "misused" to grab power in the country.
He claimed there is a civil war-like situation in the country and the prime minister is "busy" in foreign tours, adding India's relations with neighbouring countries are not good.
The Congress state chief said the BJP gives the slogan of 'One Nation One Election' but recently elections were announced in two out of four states where elections are due. By-elections were to be held in many places along with six Assembly seats of the state but it is not known when they will be held, he added.
He also asked the Centre to clear its stand on reservation. He said the people of SC-ST category are agitated as the government has not cleared its stand on the issue.
He said the Congress' stand is clear that it will not allow any kind of tampering with reservation and will not let it weaken.
Dotasra alleged that the law and order situation has deteriorated in the state. Rapes and murders are happening every day, he alleged.
