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With Narendra Modi at helm, BJP top brass meets to discuss Rajya Sabha elections

The elections to the Upper House of Parliament are scheduled to be held on March 26.

With Narendra Modi at helm, BJP top brass meets to discuss Rajya Sabha elections

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President JP Nadda. (Photo: IANS)

The Central Election Committee (CEC) of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held a meeting at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Tuesday evening to decide on the candidatures for the upcoming Rajya Sabha election.

The elections to the Upper House of Parliament are scheduled to be held on March 26.

The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived around 6 pm and was welcomed by BJP President JP Nadda. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had reached the BJP office before that. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari too were in attendance.

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Interestingly, the BJP CEC meeting is taking place on a day when Jyotiraditya Scindia announced to step down from the Congress, ending his 18-year long association with the party, soon after meeting Prime Minister Modi in the national capital along with Shah.

With Jyotiraditya Scindia’s move, the Kamal Nath-led 15-month old Congress government in Madhya Pradesh has plunged into a deep crisis even as rumours are afloat that Scindia might be joining the BJP later on Tuesday evening in the presence of Shah.

In the 245-member Upper House, members from 17 states are set to retire. The BJP has only 82 members in the Rajya Sabha, well short of the 120 required for a simple majority. Though the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has 97 seats.

Attaining the magic figures of 120 may not only be unpragmatic but also highly ambitious for the BJP. But it definitely wants to better its tally from the current 82.

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