Sharad, Tyagi likely to be re-nominated to RS

Law Kumar Mishra
Executive Editor

Patna: Former president of JD(U) Sharad Yadav and party’s national secretary general K C Tyagi are likely to be re-nominated by party president and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar as JD(U) candidates for the June 11 election to fill up the vacancies caused following retirement of five members of the Upper House. The Election Commission(EC) of India on Thursday issued notifications for the election for which nominations would start on May 24. It also announced poll schedule for the election to seven seats of Bihar Vidhan Parishad. The election to the Parishad seats will also be held simultaneously on June 11.
The five members whose term expires in Rajya Sabha are: Sharad Yadav, K C Tyagi,Pawan Kumar Verma, Ghoolam Rasool Valiyabi and Ramchandra Prasad Singh, all JD(U). Tyagi was elected in 2014 following the vacancy caused due to resignation of BJP’s Rajiv Pratap Rudy after he was elected to Lok Sabha.R C P Singh is the only retiring memebr who compelted his six years term.
The seven members of Bihar Vidhan parishad whose term expires are: Chairman of the council Awadesh Narain Singh,elected from Gaya graduates constitutency, Sanjiv Shyam Singh of Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), elected from Gaya teachers constitutency in 2010.Term of Harendra Pratap Pandey and Kiran Ghai, both, BJP also expires.Others are:Rudal Rai, Uday Kant Chaudhury and Vijay Kumar Verma, all JD(U).
With its strength in the Bihar Vidhan Sabha,both JD (U) and RJD can send two each to Rajya Sabha.Sharad Yadav and Tyagi are the strong claimants ,according to the party sources. Earlier, there was a move to send the UP Jat leader Ajit Singh to Rajya Sabha from Bihar when talks for merger of his party Rashtriya Lok Dal and JD(U) were on during March. Ajit had sent his son and son-in-law to Patna for negotiations and possibiliyy of enrolment as a voter from Bihar. However,as talks failed, JD U) will send Sharad to the Upper House.
In view of coming assembly elections in UP,Tyagi is all set to be sent to Rajya Sabha.Tyagi belongs to UP. Sharad has indicated to some of his close journalists in New Delhi about possibility of being re-n ominated by Nitish Kumar.
RJD will stake claim for two seats-one for the former chief minister Rabri Devi and another for her daughter Misa Bharti who was denied ticket for the last year’s assembly elections. Rabri’s election will enable the party president and former Railway Minister to have a ministerial bungalow in the national capital as she would be entitled to type VII bungalow because she is a former chief minister.
The JD(U) has refused to entertain the Congress claim for a Rajya Sabha this year.Party sources said the Congress would be allowed to stake its claim in 2018 and its 27 MLAs would be asked to support the RJD-JD(U) candidates.In return,the Mahagathbandhan can allow two seats to it in Vidhan Parishad. Ttwo sitting MLCs of the party-Ashok Chaudhury and Madan Mohan Jha,are members in Nitish cabinet.
From the BJP,one candidate can manage to enter Rajya Sabha from Bihar. Names of former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, union minister Nirmala Sitharaman and party’s national spokesman Shahnawaj Hussain are being circulated as candidate.Shahnawaj had lost the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Bhagalpur.For Vidhan parishad, the BJP party may nominate fresh candidates as Kiran Ghai has completed two terms and Harendra Pratap is not in good terms with the state leadership led by Sushil Modi. JD (U) is likely to nominate RCP Singh as one of its candidates for Vidhan Parishad.