| ECI notifications put question mark on Rajya Sabha, Assembly by-poll timelines | | |  Early Times Report
Jammu, May 27: The Election Commission has announced the schedule for elections to fill eight Rajya Sabha seats and five assembly seats in different states. However, there is no mention of the long-awaited elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
In Jammu and Kashmir, elections for four Rajya Sabha seats and two assembly seats have been overdue. The Rajya Sabha seats have been vacant for a long time, and the deadline for holding by-elections for the assembly seats already passed in April.
The Election Commission of India announced the schedule for the Rajya Sabha elections on Monday. Earlier, on Saturday, the schedule for by-elections in five assembly seats was revealed.
The Budgam assembly seat in central Kashmir and the Nagrota seat in Jammu district became vacant in October and November 2024. Budgam was left open after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chose to retain the Ganderbal seat instead. Nagrota fell vacant due to the untimely death of BJP leader Devender Singh Rana, who won the seat.
Omar Abdullah had won both Budgam and Ganderbal but chose to keep Ganderbal, a stronghold of his family. He defeated his opponent from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) by 18,485 votes in Budgam and won Ganderbal by 10,574 votes.
Devender Singh Rana passed away before officially taking his MLA oath. He had won from Nagrota by 30,472 votes against the NC candidate. His daughter, Devyani Rana, has been active in the constituency and is expected to contest the election on a BJP ticket.
Regarding Rajya Sabha elections, four seats reserved for Jammu and Kashmir have remained vacant since February 2021. The terms of the previous Rajya Sabha members—Ghulam Nabi Azad, Shamsher Singh Manhas, Nazir Ahmad Laway, and Fayaz Ahmad Mir—ended in February 2021.
Rajya Sabha elections are conducted by the Election Commission based on the strength of elected representatives in the legislative assembly.
In the current assembly, the NC-Congress alliance, along with some independent members and two MLAs from the CPM and AAP, is strong enough to secure two Rajya Sabha seats. The BJP can easily win one seat and may attempt to secure another with its surplus votes.
In the recent assembly elections—held after a decade—the National Conference won 42 seats, Congress won six, BJP secured 29, PDP got three, and one seat each went to the People's Conference, CPI-M, and AAP. Seven independents also won seats. |
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