National Headlines
Rajya Sabha Polls: 26 Candidates Elected Unopposed
New Delhi, March 17: As many as 26 of the nominees across seven states were already elected unopposed, with the BJP securing seven, the Congress five, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) four, the DMK three, and Shiv Sena, RPI (A), NCP, NCP (SP), AIADMK, PMK, and UPPL one each.
Those elected unopposed include Union Minister Ramdas Athawale of the Republican Party of India (Athawale), Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) supremo Sharad Pawar, the AIADMK’s M Thambidurai from Tamil Nadu, BJP national General Secretary Vinod Tawde from Maharashtra, and TMC state minister from West Bengal Babul Supriyo.
The 37 seats, which fell vacant, include seven from Maharashtra, six from Tamil Nadu, five each from Bihar and West Bengal, four from Odisha, three from Assam, two each from Telangana, Chhattisgarh and Haryana, and one from Himachal Pradesh.
The polling for the Rajya Sabha was held earlier in the day in Bihar, Odisha and Haryana. In Bihar, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won all five seats. The Janata Dal (United) had nominated Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and he has won.
In Odisha, BJP-backed Independent candidate Dilip Ray was elected to the Rajya Sabha for a third term. Three other candidates, BJP state president Manmohan Samal, BJP leader Sujeet Kumar, and BJD nominee Santrupt Mishra, were also elected to the Upper House from Odisha.
These seats are falling vacant as the terms of the sitting members from these states are set to expire in April. Among those whose terms are set to expire in April are Union Ministers Ramnath Thakur and Ramdas Athawale, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh, Sharad Pawar of the NCP-SP, Upendra Kushwaha of the RLM, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi, AIADMK leader M Thambidurai, and DMK leader Tiruchi Siva.
Bihar
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) outmanoeuvred the opposition Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) to clinch all five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar. The win came amid a ‘no show’ by four opposition MLAs, including three from the Congress and one from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), indicating that the opposition alliance could not keep its flock together. It led to the defeat of its only candidate and incumbent Rajya Sabha member, Amarendra Dhari Singh.
Nitish Kumar, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Nitin Nabin, Union minister Ram Nath Thakur, Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) president Upendra Kushwaha, and saffron party leader Shivesh Kumar were among the winners. The newly-elected members of the Upper House of the Parliament will take the oath after the current tenure of the seats expires on April 9.
“We always said that we would win all five seats. We did not have to keep our MLAs tied like the Opposition. Four-legged creatures are tied, not the human beings. The Mahagathbandhan shut its MLAs in hotel rooms. It should tell why its four legislators did not come to vote. We would have won even if they had voted,” Bihar minister and senior JD(U) leader Sharwan Kumar said.
Reacting to the absence of party MLAs and the results, Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) president Rajesh Kumar alleged that “three MLAs of our party have been stolen by the BJP.”
“We had 41 votes to win the fifth seat, while the NDA was short by three. It naturally used resources and pressure tactics to address the situation. Horse-trading in politics is unacceptable. The results show what kind of politics is going on in the country,” Shakti said.
Odisha
Banking on cross-voting by legislators from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Congress, BJP-backed Independent candidate Dilip Ray was elected to the Rajya Sabha for a third term on Monday. Three other candidates, BJP state president Manmohan Samal, BJP leader Sujeet Kumar, and BJD nominee Santrupt Mishra, were also elected to the Upper House from Odisha.
Ray’s victory is seen as a major political setback for BJD president Naveen Patnaik, who had made strong efforts to prevent his return to the Rajya Sabha. Contesting as an Independent with BJP’s backing, Ray managed to secure crucial support from legislators across party lines.
More than two decades later, Ray repeated history by entering the 2026 Rajya Sabha race as a BJP-supported Independent and securing victory once again.
“Deeply humbled and grateful. Today’s victory in the Rajya Sabha election from Odisha is not mine alone — it reflects the trust and goodwill shown by Hon’ble Members of the Legislative Assembly across political lines. I sincerely thank the Hon’ble Members of the Bharatiya Janata Party for their steadfast support. I am equally grateful to the MLAs from the BJD, Congress, and the Independents who chose to extend their support. Such moments reflect the true strength of our democracy — where the larger interests of the people and the state bring everyone together,” said Dilip Ray after the election results were announced.
“I accept this responsibility with humility and a deep sense of duty. In the Rajya Sabha, I will strive to represent the aspirations of the people of Odisha and work sincerely for the progress of our state and our nation. With folded hands, I thank everyone for the faith and trust placed in me,” he wrote in his X post.
High drama unfolded in the Odisha Assembly since morning. All 147 MLAs of the Odisha Assembly participated in the voting, which began at 9 AM in Room No. 54 of the Assembly.
With 82 MLAs, the BJP comfortably secured two Rajya Sabha seats, as each candidate required 30 votes to win. The BJD, which has 48 MLAs, had fielded Dr Datteswar Hota as its joint candidate, banking on its surplus votes. However, cross-voting altered the outcome.
As per the results, Manmohan Samal and Sujeet Kumar got 35 votes each, while Santrupt Mishra got 31 votes. Interestingly, both Ray and Hota each got 23 first preference votes. However, support from seven BJD MLAs and three Congress legislators, who voted against their party’s directives, helped him secure the required numbers.
Manmohan Samal, a veteran organisational leader of the BJP, was elected to the Rajya Sabha for the second time. He had earlier served in the Upper House from 2000 to 2004. His nomination is widely seen as recognition of his role in strengthening the party’s organisational structure and leading it to power in Odisha.
Sujeet Kumar also secured a second term in the Rajya Sabha, this time as a BJP candidate. He was earlier elected to the Upper House in 2020 as a BJD nominee, but resigned from the party in 2024 before joining the BJP. The BJD managed to retain one seat with the election of Santrupt Mishra, a former corporate executive and political adviser to Naveen Patnaik.
Haryana
In Haryana, BJP candidate Sanjay Bhatia and Congress nominee Karmveer Boddh emerged victorious. The results were declared past midnight. For the two seats, there was a triangular contest between Bhatia, Boddh and independent candidate Satish Nandal, who was backed by the BJP.
Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Haryana Assembly, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, told reporters, “This is our victory. This is the defeat of vote-chori (vote theft) and a win for democracy”.
Congress leader Deepinder Singh Hooda said, “The BJP tried to use every illegitimate way. They appointed Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister (Harsh Sanghavi) as an observer. They strangled democracy for just one Rajya Sabha seat. I congratulate Congress workers for working under pressure, and we bagged the seat.”