NEW DELHI: The Congress has announced its six candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, re-nominated Abhishek Singhvi and Phulu Devi Netam, while the district unit chief nominated for the lone seat from Himachal Pradesh.
Thursday was the last day to file nominations for the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled to be held on March 16.
Singhvi, one of the Congress’s key legal experts, who earlier headed the parliamentary committees on Home Affairs, Law and Commerce, has been nominated from Telangana. Nitam, a senior Congress leader from Chhattisgarh, survived a major Maoist attack in 2013 in which more than 20 party leaders were killed.
In line with party leader Rahul Gandhi’s focus on empowering district unit leaders, the Congress has fielded Kangra district unit president Anurag Sharma for the lone Rajya Sabha seat from Himachal Pradesh.
The party list, published by Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, snubbed senior leader and former Union minister Anand Sharma for another term. Sharma was unsuccessful in contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from the Kangra seat.
On not being nominated, Anand Sharma told news agency ANI: “I will not say that I am disappointed, but I will say one thing: Self-respect is expensive in politics. One has to pay a price for that, and telling the truth is now considered a crime.”
Sharma said the answer to why he was not nominated can only be given by those who made the decision. “It has been an honor for me to represent the state and the country for decades. I will always stand with the people of Himachal Pradesh… I will not take this matter to the high command,” he added.
The Congress also nominated Christopher Tilak, a Christian leader and AICC secretary, from Tamil Nadu.
In Haryana, Congress nominated Karamveer Singh Budh, an SC leader. “The selection of Karamveer Singh Bode reflects the party’s attempt to balance all sections of the party. Bode is a loyalist of Kumari Selja, a known opponent of former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. While Hooda became the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, Bode was rewarded with a Rajya Sabha berth,” a senior party leader said.
Besides Singhvi, Congress also nominated Vm Narender Reddy from Telangana.
