Sushil Modi likely to be BJP candidate for RS polls

Law Kumar Mishra

Patna:  As the filing of nomination papers for the biennial election to Rajya Sabha and Vidhan Parishad began on Tuesday, former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi and union minister of state for commerce Nirmala Sitharaman are on the top of the list of candidates recommended by the state election committee of BJP for the June 10 Rajya Sabha elections. There are five vacancies for Rajya Sabha , all held by JD(U) .

The state election committee, which met at the residence of Modi on Monday evening in the absence of Modi who was away at Assam, also discussed the list of BJP nominees for the election to Vidhan Parishad. With its strength in the state assembly, the BJP can send one member to Rajya Sabha and two to Vidhan Parishad. No nomination was filed on Tuesday.

Sushl Modi, leader of opposition in legislativve council, had been finance minister in the state between 2005 and 2013 and headed the group of ministers on goods and services tax (GST) set up by the union government.

Nirmala Sitharaman was elected to Rajya Sabha from Andhra Oradesh in June 2014 and her term expires next month .In her affidavit in the nomination paper, she had claimed she was a resident of Rajendranagar in Ranga Reddy district of AP. With the help of TDP led by AP CM Chandra Babu Naidu, she can be nominated again by BJP from that state. Naidu has not disassociated himself from the NDA and  attended the oath taking ceremony of new chief minister of Assam Sarvanand Sonowal on Tuesday. Sitharaman has still not enrolled herself as a voter in Bihar, according to BJP sources.

Senior BJP leaders, who were present at the meeting, said Sushil Modi may be the only choice  of the central leadership from Bihar as his chances of being inducted in union cabinet are bright.

Harendra Pratap Pandey, a strong RSS nominee,  and Bhagwan Sahni , a former MLA, are all set to be nominated for the Vidhan Parishadd elections by the  BJP.

Meanwhile,the state JD(U) president Bashistha Narayan Singh on Tuesday said the party favoured uncontested election for all the five RS and seven Vidhan Parishad seats. With its reduced strength in the assembly, JD(U) can send two memebrs to Rajya Sabha and three to Vidhan Parishad. Term of five sitting JD(U) Rajya Sabha  members: Sharad Yadav, K C Tyagi, Pawan Kumar Verma, Ghulam Rasoool Valiyabi and RCP Sinha expires in July. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has been authorised to select party nominees.In RJD too, the party’s parliamentary board has authorised Lalu Prasad to select RJD candidates.