Express News Service
PATNA: While the renomination of RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s daughter Misa Bharti for the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll is almost certain, suspense continues over whether JD-U Rajya Sabha member and union steel minister RCP Singh will make the list.
Political parties in Bihar are gearing up for the upcoming election to the five Rajya Sabha seats to be held on June 10. While two seats each will got to BJP and RJD, respectively, JD-U will have one.
Bihar chief minister and JD-U supremo Nitish Kumar on Sunday sought to underplay the speculation over nomination of Singh to his third RS term. After a meeting with leaders at the party office, Nitish told the media that the decision will come on time.
None of the parties has announced candidates. The election comes as the term of RCP Singh of JD-U, Gopal Narayan Singh and Satish Chandra Dubey of BJP and RJD’s Misa Bharti comes to an end. The term of Sharad Yadav ended after his disqualification in 2017.
If Nitish decides not to re-nominate Singh, it will be interesting to see if BJP comes to his rescue, as he has to be a member of either of the Houses of the Parliament if he has to continue as the union minister beyond six months, analyst Pramod Kumar said.
Nitish is said to be miffed with Singh for the latter’s growing proximity with BJP. At a marriage function in Bhojpur district two days ago, the usual camaraderie between the two was missing. On Sunday, RCP met some party workers while Nitish held a meeting with a select group at JD-U office.
Sources say BJP may opt for new faces, while, hunt is on for the second candidate of RJD. Former CM and HAM patron Jitan Ram Majhi has demanded a seat from NDA quota.
BJP for new faces?
Sources say BJP may opt for new faces, and is thinking about nominating one member each from upper caste, and Other Backward Classes or Extremely Backward Classes
