The All India Congress Committee (AICC) has named Bhupesh Baghel and Ajay Sharma as observers for the upcoming Rajya Sabha biennial elections in Jharkhand. This decision, sanctioned by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, is a significant move in the party’s election preparations. The Rajya Sabha polls are set for June 18, 2026.
Congress has revealed seven candidates for the biennial Rajya Sabha elections in ten states. Mallikarjun Kharge, the Party President, submitted his nomination in Karnataka today, supported by senior leaders, confirming his candidacy. The elections will address twenty-four biennial vacancies and three by-elections in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha. The nomination deadline is June 8, scrutiny on June 9, withdrawal until June 11, and counting on the evening of June 18.
The Congress lineup comprises Mallikarjun Kharge from Karnataka, Pawan Khera from Karnataka, Mansoor Ali Khan from Karnataka, Meenakshi Natarajan from Madhya Pradesh, Praveen Chakravarty from Tamil Nadu, Neeraj Dangi from Rajasthan, and Pranav Jha from Jharkhand. Kharge’s current term concludes on June 25, with the party optimistic about securing three of the four Karnataka seats based on its Assembly strength.
Rajya Sabha elections operate under proportional representation by single transferable vote, emphasizing the significance of alliances and legislative calculations. In Jharkhand, Congress is the second-largest partner in the JMM-led coalition government, with sixteen MLAs in the eighty-one-member Assembly. The party recently established a thirty-six-member political affairs committee to bolster its organizational presence, including state chief Keshav Mahto Kamlesh and incarcerated former minister Alamgir Alam.
Congress has requested one Rajya Sabha seat from the alliance, nominating Pranav Jha, citing its numerical strength. While maintaining a cooperative relationship with JMM, Congress has emphasized its autonomy on issues like land acquisition, displacement, and mining.
