As rumblings grip Congress, BJP eyes extra gains in Rajya Sabha polls

NEW DELHI: Seeking to capitalise on the resentment within Congress over the leadership “imposing outsiders” as Rajya Sabha candidates in several states, BJP has decided to target more seats than it can win on its own by backing influential Independents.
BJP has backed Subhash Chandra of Zee Media Corporation and Essel group and Kartikeya Sharma, who runs ITV Network, for RS contest in Rajasthan and Haryana. It has also fielded Dhananjay Mahadik and Lehar Singh Siroya in Maharashtra and Karnataka, respectively.
Its decision to back Chandra, who was elected from Haryana at the cost of Congress-backed lawyer RK Anand, came after the Congress leadership stunned the Rajasthan unit by nominating outsiders Mukul Wasnik, Pramod Tiwari and Randeep Surjewala for the three seats the party looked assured of winning. The choices sparked resentment, with Congress MLA Sanyam Lodha going public with his grievance.
With 41 votes required to win each seat, Congress, with 108 votes, will have to bank on Independents and regional parties to secure the win of its third candidate Tiwari. BJP, which has fielded its veteran leader Ghanshyam Tiwari, has 30 “surplus” votes which can be transferred to Chandra. The key to the outcome lies with 13 Independents, Rashtriya Loktantrik Party with three, CPI(M) and Bharatiya Tribal Party with two each and Rashtriya Lok Dal with one. In Haryana, Congress has nominated Ajay Maken, who is from Delhi, while sending its local face Surjewala to Rajasthan. Kartikeya Sharma is assured of the nine votes that BJP can spare after ensuring the win of its candiate Kishan Lal Panwar.
BJP has upped the game in Maharashtra too where Congress ranks have been roiled by the selection of Imran Pratapgarhi for the lone seat.
Karnataka is also poised for an interesting fight for the fourth seat as both Congress and BJP have fielded additional candidates, making it difficult for JD (S) to win the lone seat it was vying for.
With 122 MLAs, BJP’s first two candidates — finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and actor Jaggesh — are set to sail through whereas Siroya will be left with only 32 votes, requiring 13 more votes for a win. Congress has 70 seats and its first candidate Jairam Ramesh is set to win easily but Mansoor Ali Khan will be short of 20 votes.