Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena To Nominate Congress Turncoat Milind Deora As Candidate For Rajya Sabha Polls

Deora was speculated to contest in the Lok Sabha elections, but instead, the party has chosen him as the Rajya Sabha candidate.

Milind Deora recently switched from Congress severing decades-old family ties with the grand old party. ( Image Source :PTI )

New Delhi: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has decided to nominate Milind Deora for the Rajya Sabha candidacy. Deora will file his nomination on Thursday.

He recently switched from Congress severing decades-old family ties with the grand old party. Deora was speculated to contest in the Lok Sabha elections, but instead, the party has chosen him as the Rajya Sabha candidate.

Deora, the son of late Congress veteran leader Murli Deora, quit the party on January 14, alleging that it had deviated from its ideological and organisational roots.

Along with Deora, Sunil Narsale, Hansa Maru, Rambachan Murai, Pramod Manjrekar, Anita Yadav, Gajendra Lashkari, Ramesh Yadav, Prakash Raut joined Shiv Sena.

Recently former CM Ashok Chavan also quit the party and joined BJP on Tuesday.

It should be noted that elections for 56 Rajya Sabha seats are scheduled for February 27, and the last date for filing nominations is February 15.

Six Seats Vacant In Rajya Sabha

The tenures of Foreign Minister V. Muraleedharan from Maharashtra, Minister of State for MSME Narayan Rane, former Union Minister Prakash Javadekar, Congress leader Kumar Ketkar, NCP leader Vandana Chavan, and Shiv Sena (UBTI) leader Anil Desai are coming to a close.

The BJP has nominated Ashok Chavan, Medha Kulkarni, and Ajit Gopchhade as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha, while Congress has announced Dalit leader Chandrakant Hangod as its candidate.

Meanwhile, the NCP and Shiv Sena factions led by Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray, respectively, have not yet announced their candidates. yet.

ECI Announcement On Rajya Sabha Election 2024

Last month, the Election Commission of India (ECI) declared the schedule for the Rajya Sabha elections across 15 states, encompassing 56 seats. The polling for these seats, scheduled for February 27, aims to fill vacancies created by retiring members in April 2024.

According to the commission's press note, Uttar Pradesh will witness the retirement of the highest count of members, totaling 10, on April 2, 2024. Similarly, Maharashtra and Bihar will see six members retiring on the same date. West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh are set to have five members each retiring on April 2, 2024. Karnataka and Gujarat will observe the retirement of four members each on the same date.

Furthermore, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, and Rajasthan will each witness the retirement of three members, with their retirement dates falling in early April 2024. Additionally, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand are expected to have one member each retiring on April 2, 2024.

The upcoming Rajya Sabha elections are poised to be a crucial battleground for political parties, with each vying to secure a strong representation in the upper house of the Parliament.