Gujarat: BJP RS picks meet MLAs ahead of nomination filing

Gandhinagar: Candidates finalised by the BJP to contest the four Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat held a meeting with party MLAs in Gandhinagar on Sunday, ahead of filing their nomination papers at the assembly on Monday.

State BJP leaders said the meeting was held to ensure coordination between the Rajya Sabha candidates and the legislators.Speaking to reporters after the meeting, RS candidate Mukesh Rathwa said that all four candidates would file their nomination papers on Monday, the last date for the process.“During today’s meeting, I and the three other Rajya Sabha candidates took guidance from party leaders, including CM Bhupendra Patel, deputy CM Harsh Sanghavi, and state BJP president Jagdish Vishwakarma.

We familiarised ourselves with all the party MLAs during the meeting and thanked them for their support,” Rathwa said.On June 4, the BJP announced the candidatures of Rajubhai Shukla, Mukesh Rathwa, Mansinh Parmar, and Jitendra Kanzariya for the four Rajya Sabha seats from the state. With the BJP having 161 MLAs in the 182-member Gujarat assembly and no opposition party announcing candidates so far, the saffron party is set to sweep all four seats.

Four Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat are being vacated as the terms of MPs Rambhai Mokariya, Narhari Amin, Shaktisinh Gohil, and Ramilaben Bara end on June 21. Gohil is the lone Congress member from Gujarat in the Upper House, while the remaining three are from the BJP.June 8 is the last day for filing nominations, and scrutiny of papers will take place on June 9, with June 11 being the last date for withdrawal of nominations. If multiple candidates file their papers, voting will take place at the Assembly complex on June 18, and results will be announced on the same day.