Haryana Rajya Sabha poll: Satish Nandal enters race for two seats as third candidate; to contest as Independent

Satish Nandal entered the fray for the upcoming Haryana Rajya Sabha election as an Independent candidate on the last date of filing nominations on Thursday (March 5, 2026), adding a third dimension to the contest for two seats in the State.

Congress named Scheduled Caste leader Karamvir Singh Boudh as its candidate for the biennial Rajya Sabha election to two seats in Haryana on Thursday (March 5), while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had already named former Karnal Lok Sabha MP Sanjay Bhatia as its candidate. Mr. Bhatia is considered close confidant of Union Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal.

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Though the BJP and the Congress candidates are expected to have a smooth sail with the two parties having 48 and 37 MLAs respectively in the 90-member Assembly, the entry of Mr. Nandal could make the election interesting, especially with the Congress’ dubious record of having lost two Rajya Sabha elections in the past despite having the requisite numbers.

Congress leader Ajay Maken had lost the high-stakes Haryana Rajya Sabha election in June 2022 with a margin of less than one vote in a major setback to the party due to cross-voting and an invalid vote.

Mr. Nandal had unsuccessfully contested against two-time Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda from Garhi-Sampla-Kiloi Assembly constituency as a BJP candidate in 2019.