According to a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) official, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has traveled here to submit his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha elections from Gujarat on Monday.
Jaishankar, who along with two other Rajya Sabha members from the state has a term that expires on August 18, is expected to submit his nomination form at approximately noon on Monday, according to Gujarat BJP general secretary Pradeepsinh Vaghela.
On Sunday, Jaishankar arrived at the Ahmedabad airport and was welcomed by BJP officials, Ahmedabad Mayor Kirit Parmar, and Gujarat Minister Raghavji Patel.
Jaishankar’s nomination seemed likely even though the BJP hasn’t formally announced its candidates for the three Rajya Sabha seats where elections are set to take place on July 24.
Due to a lack of MLAs in the 182-member state Assembly, the Congress said on Friday that it will not run candidates for the three Gujarati Rajya Sabha seats.
In the late-year elections for the Gujarat Assembly, the BJP won a record 156 seats, while the Congress managed to win only 17 seats, which was its poorest showing since the state was created.
The BJP presently has eight of the 11 Rajya Sabha seats in Gujarat, while the Congress holds the other three. S Jaishankar, Jugalji Thakor, and Dinesh Anavadiya’s mandates in the eight seats controlled by the BJP will expire on August 18. There will be elections for these three positions. The deadline for submitting nominations is July 13, and the withdrawal deadline is July 17. If voting is necessary, it will take place on July 24.
