BJP’s Jaishankar, Jugalkishore Set To Bag Both Gujarat Rajya Sabha Seats

Gandhinagar: BJP candidates, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and party OBC Cell member Jugalkishore Thakor, were on Friday poised to bag both the Rajya Sabha seats that fell vacant in Gujarat, with the ruling party getting 105 votes and the Congress managing 70, including that of Independent MLA Jignesh Mevani. Polling for the two Rajya Sabha seats vacated by Union Ministers Amit Shah and Smriti Irani after they were elected to the Lok Sabha in the April-May elections ended at 4 p.m. The official results were yet to be declared by the Election Commission.

Voting took place at a single polling booth at the state Assembly complex with separate divisions for the two seats, since elections were held separately for the seats as decided by the Election Commission. Since these were by-elections and Amit Shah and Irani had resigned on different dates, the elections to both the seats were conducted separately. The Congress had challenged this decision in the Supreme Court demanding joint elections, but was turned down. Rebel Congress MLAs Alpesh Thakor and his protege Dhavalsinh Jhala were also reported to have cast their votes for the BJP candidates. With this, the BJP got 100 of its own legislators’ votes, two of BTP, one NCP and two Congress rebels. (IANS)

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