Page 2 - Rajya Sabha

Congress protests nomination rejection as EC agrees to hear Natarajan plea

Congress leaders staged a protest outside the Election Commission office after Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination was rejected, with the poll body agreeing to meet a party delegation

Congress nominee Meenakshi Natarajan's RS poll nomination rejected

The upcoming elections to three Rajya Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh took a dramatic turn on Tuesday with the nomination of Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan being rejected on charges of concealing information about a case in the affidavit. "Natarajan's nomination has been rejected by the Returning Officer on the grounds of hiding information about a case," an MP Assembly official told PTI. A complaint was submitted by BJP candidate Mahesh Kewat, contesting the third Rajya Sabha seat, to the Returning Officer alleging that Natarajan deliberately hid information about a case filed against her in Telangana. Sanket Gupta, the lawyer representing Kewat, told reporters that a criminal case is pending against Natarajan in a Telangana court and is not mentioned in the affidavit. He said the Returning Officer has rejected her nomination on this basis. "This information has been deliberately concealed. According to Supreme Court guidelines, you are required to provide this information

Rajya Sabha elections 2026: How elections take place for the Upper House

Representatives of the Rajya Sabha (the Upper House) are elected for a period of six years. But one-third of the members of the Rajya Sabha retire every second year

TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray quits party, steps down as Rajya Sabha member

In a major blow to the TMC amid the political turmoil rocking the organisation, Rajya Sabha MP Sukhen Shekhar Ray on Monday resigned from the party and also stepped down as a member of the Upper House of Parliament. Ray, a veteran leader and one of the most articulate voices of the TMC in Parliament, submitted his resignation to the Rajya Sabha chairman and simultaneously announced his decision to quit the Mamata Banerjee-led party. The development comes at a time when the TMC is grappling with an unprecedented internal crisis, following a rebellion in its legislative wing and growing tensions among different factions within the organisation. In his resignation letter, Ray said he was relinquishing his parliamentary membership and severing association with the TMC.

Fresh setback for BJD as Rajya Sabha MP Debashish Samantaray quits

Senior BJD leader and Rajya Sabha MP Debashish Samantaray resigned from the party and the Upper House, alleging he was being sidelined within the organisation

Raghav Chadha appointed chairman of Rajya Sabha Committee on Petitions

Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha who switched from the AAP to the BJP recently has been appointed as the new chairman of the Committee on Petitions of the Upper House. After reconstituting the Committee on Petitions, Rajya Sabha chairman C P Radhakrishnan nominated 10 members of the house to the panel. "Raghav Chadha has been appointed Chairman of the Committee," a Rajya Sabha notification said. The panel has been reconstituted by the Rajya Sabha chairman with effect from May 20, it said. The members of the panel besides Chadha are: Harsh Mahajan, Gulam Ali, Shambhu Sharan Patel, Mayankkumar Nayak, Masthan Rao Yadav Beedha, Jebi Mather Hisham, Subhasish Khuntia, Rwngwra Narzary and Sandosh Kumar P. In another notification, the Rajya Sabha secretariat said, "The Chairman, Rajya Sabha has, on the 20 May, 2026, nominated Dr Menaka Guruswamy, Member, Rajya Sabha to be a member of the Joint Committee on the Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026.

EC announces Rajya Sabha polls for 24 seats on June 18

The Election Commission on Friday announced polls for 24 Rajya Sabha seats on June 18. In a statement, the EC said the elections for the Rajya Sabha seats will be held in 10 states where the incumbents are retiring on different dates beginning June 21 to July 19. The Rajya Sabha elections will be held in four seats each in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Karnataka, three seats each in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two seats in Jharkhand and one seat each in Manipur, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. The last date for filing nominations is June 8.

Rajya Sabha panel to look into settlement regulations of Competition Act

The committee had already met MCA, CCI on commitment regulations on March 10

Punjab CM heads to Delhi to meet President Murmu over AAP MPs' defection

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, accompanied by party MLAs, departed for Delhi on Tuesday morning to meet President Droupadi Murmu regarding the recent defection of seven Rajya Sabha MPs to the BJP. On April 24, the Aam Aadmi Party suffered a jolt when seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs -- Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney and Swati Maliwal -- quit and merged with the BJP, alleging that the party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals. Six of the seven MPs who left AAP were from Punjab. Mann is scheduled to meet the President at 12 noon at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday. While departing for Delhi, Mann affirmed that all AAP MLAs stand united with the party. "Only I have been given time for the meeting," Mann said while speaking to reporters here. "The President is the guardian of the Constitution. She is the constitutional head of the country," he added. The MLAs and ministers gathered at the chief .

Watch: Raghav Chadha joins BJP, says 2/3rd of AAP Rajya Sabha MPs also merging

Raghav Chadha, a Rajya Sabha member from Punjab, resigned from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday after months of tension with the party leadership.

AAP to move court after RS Chairman accepts merger of 7 MPs with BJP

AAP plans legal challenge after Rajya Sabha Chairman accepts merger of seven MPs with BJP, sparking debate over anti-defection law provisions

Rajya Sabha Chairman accepts merger of 7 defected AAP MPs with BJP

Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan on Monday officially accepted the merger of seven Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MPs with the BJP, reducing the strength of Arvind Kejriwal's party in the Upper House to three. After this transition, the BJP's strength in the Upper House has increased to 113. Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Vikramjit Sahney, Swati Maliwal, and Rajinder Gupta are the seven MPs who have merged. The Rajya Sabha website now shows that the seven MPs are part of the BJP list of members. The seven MPs had on Friday petitioned the Rajya Sabha Chairman to be treated as BJP MPs after the merger and the same has been accepted, sources said. The AAP had on Sunday moved a petition before the RS Chairman seeking the termination of the membership of the seven MPs, who had switched sides. Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh said he has submitted a petition to Chairman Radhakrishnan seeking the disqualification of the seven party MPs in the Upper House, who

AAP to write to Rajya Sabha chairman for disqualification of defected MPs

AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Saturday said that the party will write to the Rajya Sabha chairman to seek the disqualification of seven of its MPs, who quit the party a day ago, from the Upper House. "Anti-defection law clearly states that any type of split or faction cannot happen in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. It does not carry any legal recognition, even if it's a two-thirds majority," Singh said. The AAP leader said that neither the anti-defection law nor the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution recognises any kind of split, breakaway faction, or group in the Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha, two-thirds majority notwithstanding. The seven MPs who have announced joining the BJP are completely "unconstitutional" and "illegal," he said. "I am writing to the vice president of India, and chairman of Rajya Sabha, to disqualify the seven MPs," Singh added. AAP Rajya Sabha MPs Raghav Chadha and Sandeep Pathak on Friday announced that they are joining the BJP along with five other MPs of the ...

AAP no longer the same party, no one can work with Kejriwal: Swati Maliwal

Defected AAP MP Swati Maliwal on Saturday alleged that her former party had "strayed far" from its original principles, and its leader Arvind Kejriwal is no longer the same. Barely a year after losing power to the BJP in Delhi, AAP suffered its greatest jolt on Friday when seven of its Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha and Maliwal, quit the party. The other defectors were Sandeep Pathak, a key face of the party organisation, former cricketer Harbhajan Singh, Ashok Mittal, Rajinder Gupta and Vikram Sahney. Maliwal, who joined the BJP after defecting, praised the "decisive and strong leadership" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "I left my home, lived in slums for seven years, quit my job and supported every movement. But when I tried to file an FIR after being assaulted, I was beaten up at Kejriwal's residence by his aide," Maliwal told PTI Videos. She claimed that when she tried to pursue the complaint, she was "threatened and pressured" to withdraw it. "For two years, I wa

Who is Ashok Mittal? Ex-AAP MP who switched to BJP 10 days after ED raid

Rajya Sabha MP and LPU founder rose from a family sweets business to build a major education enterprise, gaining prominence in AAP before joining the exodus led by Raghav Chadha

Delimitation and devolution must advance together for India's democracy

One cannot keep kicking two contentious cans down the road forever

Seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, including Chadha, announce switch to BJP

Seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha, announce move to BJP, boosting NDA strength in Upper House ahead of crucial state elections

Raghav Chadha joins BJP, says 2/3rd of AAP Rajya Sabha MPs also merging

He stated that his own party had tried to silence him

Ex-Rajya Sabha member Dr Gopalrao Patil passes away at 94 in Maharashtra

Former Rajya Sabha member and noted paediatrician Dr Gopalrao Patil passed away in Maharashtra's Latur city on Tuesday morning following an illness, family sources said. He was 94. Patil breathed his last at a private hospital here at 7.12 am, they said. He served as a Rajya Sabha member from the BJP between 1994 and 2000 and contributed to key parliamentary committees, including commerce, external affairs, and railways. Patil was also a visionary educationist. He founded the Shiv Chhatrapati Shikshan Sanstha, which runs Rajarshi Shahu College in Latur. Born on October 3, 1931, at Kavtha village in Dharashiv district, Patil pursued his medical education from Osmania University, Hyderabad, and went on to become one of Latur's most respected child specialists. His free medical services in rural areas had earned him the affectionate title of 'Devmanus' among locals. He had also served as a lecturer in a medical college in Kurnool, Hyderabad and worked as a medical officer in Kurund

Key Constitution Amendment Bills since 2014: A look at how they fared

Shifting numbers in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha reshape NDA's strategy, as constitutional amendment Bills face tougher passage despite earlier dominance