Newly inducted Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Prakash Chik Baraik and Sushmita Dev, who have just jumped ship from the Trinamool Congress (Kalighat faction) filed their nomination papers for the upcoming Rajya Sabha by-elections from West Bengal on Monday.
The three nominees filed their papers at the State Assembly on Monday, formally entering the contest for the three vacant Upper House seats, necessitated after the trio vacated their seats when they resigned from the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC.
The nomination papers were submitted in the presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and BJP’s state president Samik Bhattacharya, signalling the party leadership’s full backing for the trio. Roy, Baraik and Dev formally joined the BJP last Thursday.
Within hours of their induction, the saffron party announced the three former TMC MPs as its candidates for the Rajya Sabha by-elections.
Their swift elevation to Rajya Sabha candidacy sparked questions in political circles, because Bhattacharya had earlier mentioned that the party’s doors will not be open to those from the TMC. However, following the induction of the three former MPs, Bhattacharya described their entry into the BJP as an “exceptional” case.
Sukhendu Sekhar Roy was the first among the three to resign from the Rajya Sabha, vacating his seat on June 8. Sushmita Dev resigned on June 10, followed by Prakash Chik Baraik on June 11.
The Rajya Sabha by-elections for these seats are scheduled for July 24. The last date for filing nominations is July 14, while scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on July 15. Candidates can withdraw their nominations until July 17. Polling, if required, will be held between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on July 24.
The BJP currently enjoys a commanding majority in the West Bengal Assembly following its victory in the recent Assembly elections. The party won 208 seats but its effective strength now stands at 207 after chief minister Suvendu Adhikari vacated the Nandigram Assembly seat while retaining Bhabanipur.
The opposition camp currently has 85 MLAs. The Trinamool Congress holds 80 seats, while the Congress and Humayun Kabir’s AJUP have two seats each, and the CPI(M) and the ISF have one seat each.
One AJUP seat also fell vacant after Humayun Kabir retained Naoda and resigned from Rejinagar.
With the BJP holding a clear majority in the Assembly and the Trinamool Congress remaining divided, the ruling party is widely expected to win all three Rajya Sabha seats comfortably.