BJP Fields Nadda From Gujarat, Chavan From Maharashtra

New Delhi: Putting an end to speculations on whether or not Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) president J.P. Nadda’s Rajya Sabha term will be extended, the party’s central election committee on Wednesday announced that its national president will be renominated to the Upper House of Parliament but this time from Gujarat. Nadda is currently representing his home state Himachal Pradesh, and his term is ending in April. The hill state is currently under the Congress’s rule.

Of the names announced by the BJP on Wednesday include that of former Congress stalwart and former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan, Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and a paediatric and a “kar sevak” Ashok Ghopchade. While Vaishnaw has been renominated from Odisha, Chavan, who had joined the BJP on Tuesday and Dr Ghopchade have been nominated from Maharashtra. The third name from Maharashtra is that of former MLA Medha Kulkarni. Speculation is rife in Maharashtra BJP that the party could field a fourth “surprise” candidate to upset the arithmetic of the “Mahavikas Aghadi” amidst the rumour that more than three to four MLAs from the Congress, close to Chavan, are ready to jump the ship. Polls for the 56 Rajya Sabha seats are scheduled to be held on February 27, and the last date for filing nominations is February 15.

Of the prominent BJP leaders whose RS term in ending by May include Central ministers: Mansukh Manda-viya, Bhupender Yadav, Parshottam Rupala, Dhar-mendra Pradhan, V. Murleedharan, Narayan Rane, Rajeev Chandra-shekhar, L. Murugan and Ashwini Vaishnaw. Though the BJP has renominated Vaishnaw and Murugan, speculation is rife that many of its current Rajya Sabha members, including Union ministers, will be contesting the Lok Sabha polls.