Rajya Sabha election results: BJP wins 21, Congress wins 9
The announcement of all the results to the Rajya Sabha elections held on June 10 was completed today (June 11). As per the Election Commission of India, which oversaw the elections held in the four state assembles of Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Haryana (41 had already been elected unopposed), eight of the 16 seats fought for went to BJP, five to Congress, and one each to Shiv Sena, NCP (both in alliance to the Congress in Maharashtra) and a BJP-backed Independent candidate.
Among the prominent winners were Union ministers and BJP leaders Nirmala Sitharaman (from Karnataka, where a BJP-led alliance is in power) and Piyush Goyal (from Maharashtra, where BJP is in the opposition), Congress’ Randeep Surjewala (from Rajasthan, where the Congress is in power) and Jairam Ramesh (from Maharashtra) and Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut (from Maharashtra, where the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance, MVA is in power).
Among other significant results were the defeat of BJP-backed Independent, media baron Subhas Chandra (Zee Group) in Rajasthan, and the victories of BJP’s Dhananjay Mahadik in Maharashtra (defeating a strong candidate, Sanjay Pawar of Shiv Sena) and another BJP-backed Independent, also a media baron (owner of NewsX group of channels), Kartikeya Sharma, who won by a whisker, defeating prominent Congress candidate, Ajay Maken. A cross-voting by a Congress candidate and an invalid vote ensured Maken’s defeat.
Thus, of the total of 57 seats that went to the polls, 21 are from BJP, nine from Congress, four from YSR Congress, three each from BJD and DMK, two each from SP, AIADMK, TRS, RJD and AAP, one each from RLD (with SP backing), JD(U), JMM, Shiv Sena and NCP, and two are Independent candidates (Kapil Sibal, with SP backing, and Kartikeya Sharma, with BJP backing).
Seen in the light of the presidential election, the result becomes significant. BJD and YSR Congress, which had been supporting the BJP at the Centre for several years, but have been opposing it in select cases recently, are expected to play a significant part. All MLAs and MPs vote in the election to elect the President, and these two parties are in power in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, respectively.
In this respect, the opposition meeting called by Trinamool Congress Chairperson Mamata Banerjee on June 15 also assumes significance. With invitations sent to 22 chief ministers, it remains to be seen how many would attend to decide on a combined opposition candidate.
