Akali Dal names Dhindsa, Gujral for Rajya Sabha polls
March 15th, 2010 - 11:16 pm ICT by IANS
Chandigarh, March 15 (IANS) Former union minister Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and sitting Rajya Sabha member Naresh Gujral Monday filed their nominations for the March 26 elections to the upper house of parliament after Punjab’s ruling Akali Dal named them as its candidates.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is part of the Punjab’s coalition government, named former Lok Sabha MP Avinash Rai Khanna as its candidate for the elections.
Elections for five Rajya Sabha seats from the state, which are falling vacant next month, is scheduled for March 26.
The Akali Dal-BJP alliance is likely to get three seats and the opposition Congress is likely to win two seats on the basis of the respective strengths of the parties in the state assembly.
While Dhindsa, one of the senior-most Akali Dal leaders, lost the Lok Sabha election from Sangrur last year, Gujral, the son of former prime minister Inder Kumar Gujral, has earlier been a Lok Sabha member from the state.
The Congress is likely to re-nominate union Sports Minister M.S. Gill for the Rajya Sabha poll since his term in the house ends next month.
Punjab’s Chief Electoral Officer Kusumjit Sidhu said that Dhindsa and Gujral filed their nomination papers Monday.
Tuesday is the last date for filing nominations.
- Gill, Dhindsa, Gujral elected to Rajya Sabha from Punjab - Mar 19, 2010
- Election to five Rajya Sabha seats in Punjab March 26 - Mar 09, 2010
- Akali Dal releases second list of candidates - Dec 27, 2011
- BJP names Rajay Sabha candidates from Punjab, Himachal - Mar 15, 2010
- Congress announces 114 names for Punjab poll - Jan 06, 2012
- Ambika Soni elected to Rajya Sabha unopposed - Jun 10, 2010
- Amarinder's brother leads list of Punjab Congress rebels - Jan 07, 2012
- Akalis field Olympian Pargat Singh, Sukhbir Badal files nomination - Jan 09, 2012
- 1,080 in fray for Punjab assembly polls - Jan 16, 2012
- 1,880 file nominations for Punjab polls - Jan 12, 2012
- It's SAD! Seven Punjab ministers, speaker trounced - Mar 07, 2012
- Committed to bringing a strong Lokpal: PM - Jan 21, 2012
- Ambika Soni, Mohsina elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha (Roundup) - Jun 11, 2010
- Akali Dal-BJP win 68 seats in Punjab - Mar 06, 2012
- Akali Dal-BJP kick off Punjab poll campaign - Dec 18, 2011
Tags: akali dal leaders, bharatiya janata party, bjp, chief electoral officer, coalition government, former prime minister, gujral, house of parliament, inder kumar, last date, lok sabha election, lok sabha member, nomination papers, opposition congress, rajya sabha, state assembly, sukhdev, union minister, union sports, upper house of parliament