Rajya Sabha Polls: Unopposed Victory for 3 AAP, 1 BJP Candidates

Rajya Sabha Polls

In the recent Rajya Sabha elections, three candidates from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and one candidate from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were elected unopposed to the Upper House of Parliament. The AAP candidates were Sanjay Singh, ND Gupta and Swati Maliwal, while the BJP candidate was Dorjee Shereng Lepcha.

AAP’s Success in Delhi

The AAP, which is the ruling party in Delhi, had nominated Maliwal, who is the former chief of Delhi Commission for Women, as its Rajya Sabha candidate for the first time. Singh and Gupta were renominated for a second term in the Upper House. They were elected unopposed as no other party had filed nomination against them.

A senior official in the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office told PTI, “All three Rajya Sabha nominees have been elected unopposed. And, certificates have also been issued.”

The AAP has a majority of 62 seats in the 70-member Delhi Assembly. The party had won a landslide victory in the 2020 assembly polls, defeating the BJP and the Congress.

BJP’s Breakthrough in Sikkim

The BJP candidate Lepcha won the lone Rajya Sabha seat from Sikkim unopposed. He was the only person to file nomination for the election. He was declared elected after his papers were scrutinized and found valid.

Lepcha will replace Hishey Lachungpa of the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) as the Rajya Sabha MP from Sikkim, whose term will end on February 23.

Lepcha’s candidature was supported by the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM). His election is seen as a reward for BJP’s emergence as a major force in the Himalayan state.

Lepcha was among the nine SDF MLAs who joined the saffron party in 2019, making it the second-largest party in the state assembly overnight.

Conclusion

The Rajya Sabha elections have reflected the political dominance of AAP in Delhi and BJP in Sikkim. The two parties have secured their representation in the Upper House without any opposition. The newly elected MPs are expected to raise the issues and concerns of their respective states in Parliament.