Rajya Sabha Election 2018: Election Commission Finds No Irregularities In UP Cross-Voting, Counting Restarts: 10 Points

Rajya Sabha election: Samajwadi Party is sure to win one of the 10 seats but it is anxious about being able to keep up its deal with Mayawati.

All India | Reported by Akhilesh Sharma, Edited by Anindita Sanyal | Updated: March 23, 2018 20:09 IST

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Rajya Sabha Election 2018: Election Commission Finds No Irregularities In UP Cross-Voting, Counting Restarts: 10 Points

Rajya Sabha Election 2018: The BJP is expected to consolidate its position as the largest party

New Delhi: The counting of Rajya Sabha votes in Uttar Pradesh started after the Election Commission examined the complaints of the BSP and SP and found nothing objectionable, sources said. The parties had complained that their two candidates who cross voted, violated norms by failing to disclose ballots to the party counting agent. Voting was held today for 26 of 59 Rajya Sabha seats falling vacant; 33 candidates were elected unopposed. The BJP is expected to gain around a dozen seats and consolidate its position as the largest party, but it is far from majority in the 245-member Upper House. The Congress is set to lose around four seats. Contests took place in Uttar Pradesh, Bengal, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Telangana.

Here is your 10-point guide to the Rajya Sabha election 2018:

In Uttar Pradesh, where there are 11 candidates for 10 seats, it is a prestige battle, with the ruling BJP out to avenge its recent by-poll humiliation at the hands of the Samajwadi Party and Mayawati's BSP. A party needs 37 first preference votes to win a seat in the state, which assures eight seats to the BJP and one to the Samajwadi Party. The BJP however, supported a ninth candidate, an independent member, forcing a contest in one seat.
Mayawati's party, which has 18 lawmakers, expected to push through a candidate with surplus votes from the SP, Congress and a few Independents. It counted on eight SP votes, seven Congress votes and one from Ajit Singh's party. Two independent candidates are also likely to vote for the BSP. But with a BSP leader cross-voting, the party was left two votes short. After voting, BSP's Anil Kumar Singh came out and declared, "I am with Maharaj-ji", referring to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Independent lawmaker Raja Bhaiyya, who was jailed by Mayawati's government, said he would vote for the Samajwadi Party. Akhilesh Yadav is supporting Mayawati in return for her support in the recent by-elections. The collaboration helped SP win two parliamentary seats and was seen as holding out hope for a larger alliance in the 2019 general elections.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is among the BJP candidates expected to sail through. The Samajwadi Party (SP) has fielded Jaya Bachchan and the BSP has put up Bhim Rao Ambedkar.
Of West Bengal's five seats, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool won four seats. With the party's surplus votes, Congress's Abhishek Manu Singhvi won the fifth. The Left, which put up a token candidate, lost.
There are three candidates for two vacancies in Jharkhand. The BJP has fielded two candidates and the Congress had put up one. With only seven votes, the Congress is eyeing the support of 19 Jharkhand Mukti Morcha lawmakers besides other smaller parties.
In Karnataka, the ruling Congress fielded three candidates for four seats but has enough to win only two. The BJP has enough to send one candidate. With 32 extra votes, the Congress hoped to win a third seat, with help from rebel lawmakers of the Janata Dal (Secular). During voting, the JD(S) demanded the elections be cancelled, claiming two Congressmen, who initially cross-voted, were given a second chance.
The BJP has already won the single seat in Chhattisgarh.
In Telangana, the ruling TRS, which had the numbers for only two of its three candidates, pushed in a third with the support of the AIMIM of Asaduddin Owaisi. The Congress fielded a candidate in a token contest. The opposition BJP and TDP did not take part in the Rajya Sabha election.
In Kerala, the Left-led coalition and the Congress-led opposition grouping are contesting the by-election for one seat. The Left has enough to win the lone seat with 19 votes to spare.