The BJP on Saturday announced the party’s Assam state secretary Kanad Purkayastha as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha election from the state.

In an official statement, the BJP said that the party’s Central Election Committee approved the name of Kanad Purkayastha for the election.

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Purkayastha is son of former union minister Kabrindra Purkayastha, who served as the Minister of State for Communication in the Atal Bihar Vajpayee cabinet.

Meanwhile, two Rajya Sabha members from Assam, Mission Ranjan Das of BJP and Birendra Prasad Baishya of the Asom Gana Parishad are also set to retire from the upper house of the parliament on June 14.

From Tamil Nadu, Anbumani Ramadoss (Pattali Makkal Katchi), M Shanmugam (DMK), N Chandrasegharan (AIADMK), M Mohamed Abdulla (DMK), P Wilson (DMK), and Vaiko of MDMK will retire on July 24.

Last month, the Election Commission of India had announced the schedule for the biennial elections for eight Rajya Sabha seats, including six seats from Tamil Nadu and two seats from Assam.

The polling for the election will be held on June 19. The counting of votes will take place on the same day, it said.