Local leaders demanded in Rajya Sabha

Bhopal, Mar 06: In the election year, Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) is making efforts to get leaders of the state in the Rajya Sabha, as elections to three seats are likely in the current month. Picking up local leaders would impact the forthcoming assembly elections in the state on caste and region wise, because there are several leaders who need to be rewarded.

As there are only few months left for the assembly elections and those leaders who had played important role in winning the past election, are yet to be rewarded. There are three members from Rajya Sabha whose tenure is expiring in April this year. Two of them Union Minister Suresh Pachauri and Obaidullah Khan Azmi were from Congress, while Maya Singh was from BJP. Since Congress has only 38 legislators in the state, BJP is likely to bag all the three seats now.

The names of former organizational General Secretary Kaptan Singh Solanki and state vice president of the party Anil Madhav Dave are on the list, as they being behind the stage chalked out strategy in the last assembly elections in 2003. After the BJP has already implemented 33 percent reservation, one seat would certainly go to a woman candidate. Party sources said that the list of probable names is being prepared and soon the names would be finalized in the meeting of State Election Committee and then the high command in New Delhi would take final decision. Notification regarding these three vacancies is likely on March 26. Other names which are also in the fray from Madhya Pradesh are state BJP executive member Raghunandan Sharma, Prabhat Jha, Rajya Sabh member Maya Singh, and state BJP spokesperson Sudha Malaiya.