BHOPAL: The Congress has decided to send senior lawyer Vivek Tankha to Rajya Sabha for a second term. State party chief Kamal Nath confirmed Tankha's nomination on Saturday but Congress is yet to officially announce its RS candidates.
May 31 is the last day for filing of nomination papers and elections will be held on June 10. Sources in state Congress said that Nath met AICC president Sonia Gandhi last week on Rajya Sabha nominations and it was decided that Tankha, who is close to both Digvijaya Singh and Kamal Nath, will be sent for a second tenure in the Upper House. Tankha was active in his first term and Congress cannot afford to disregard a Supreme Court lawyer, especially after the exit of former Union minister Kapil Sibal.
Three RS seats are falling vacant in Madhya Pradesh on June 29. The numbers say two of them will go to the BJP and one to Congress. These three seats were represented in the Rajya Sabha by Sampatiya Uike and MJ Akbar for BJP and Tankha for the Congress.
BJP is yet to announce its candidates.
