The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday strengthened its position in the Rajya Sabha after securing all three Upper House seats from Madhya Pradesh and all four seats from Gujarat, with candidates in both states being elected unopposed amid a controversy over the rejection of senior Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination from Madhya Pradesh.
The three BJP candidates from Madhya Pradesh — Rajneesh Agrawal, Tarun Chugh and Mahesh Kewat — were formally declared elected after the deadline for withdrawal of nominations expired and no valid rival candidates remained in the contest. Their election followed the rejection of Congress nominee Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination papers during scrutiny by election authorities.
According to an order issued by Rajya Sabha Election Returning Officer Arvind Sharma, Natarajan’s nomination was rejected after scrutiny revealed that she had allegedly submitted an incomplete affidavit in Form 26, omitting details relating to a court complaint. The rejection dramatically altered the electoral arithmetic and effectively ensured an uncontested victory for all three BJP nominees.
The Congress has strongly contested the decision. Natarajan approached the Supreme Court on Thursday challenging the rejection of her nomination and seeking relief ahead of the June 18 Rajya Sabha election date. The petition has added a legal dimension to what has already become a significant political controversy in Madhya Pradesh.
The matter reached the apex court even as the election process moved forward. The Supreme Court, however, declined to grant an immediate stay on the election outcome, observing that courts generally refrain from interfering once the formal election process has commenced. The court has listed the Congress leader’s challenge for a detailed hearing on Friday.
The BJP welcomed the unopposed election of its candidates in Madhya Pradesh. Tarun Chugh, the party’s national general secretary, Rajneesh Agrawal, a senior BJP leader from the state, and Mahesh Kewat, former chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Fisherman Welfare Board, will now represent the state in the Upper House.
In Gujarat, the BJP completed a clean sweep of all four Rajya Sabha seats after the Congress chose not to field any candidates. As a result, Raju Shukla, Mansinh Parmar, Mukesh Rathwa and Jitendra Kanjariya were elected unopposed.
The outcome carries significant political implications for Gujarat, where the Congress now has no representation in the Rajya Sabha. The BJP’s success reflects its overwhelming strength in the Gujarat Assembly and further consolidates the party’s dominance in a state that has remained its strongest political bastion for decades.
Meanwhile, candidates in Rajasthan were also declared elected unopposed after the withdrawal deadline passed. BJP leaders Satish Poonia and Alka Gurjar, along with Congress candidate Neeraj Dangi, secured election to the Rajya Sabha without a contest.
In Karnataka, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge was among four candidates elected unanimously to the Upper House. At the time of filing this report, state authorities were in the process of completing formal confirmation procedures for the remaining elected members.
The latest Rajya Sabha elections are being held to fill vacancies arising from the retirement of sitting members from several states. While a number of seats have been decided unopposed due to the number of candidates matching the vacancies available, voting remains scheduled for June 18 in states where contests are still required under the system of proportional representation through the single transferable vote.
The developments in Madhya Pradesh have emerged as the most closely watched aspect of this round of Rajya Sabha elections. The Congress has alleged that the rejection of Natarajan’s nomination deprived the opposition of a legitimate contest, while the BJP has maintained that election authorities acted strictly in accordance with statutory requirements governing nomination papers.
The Supreme Court’s forthcoming hearing is expected to determine whether the Congress can secure any legal remedy regarding the rejection of its candidate’s nomination, even as the BJP celebrates another significant gain in the Upper House and further expands its parliamentary strength.