Unopposed victory: S Jaishankar expresses gratitude on securing RS seats from Gujarat

Ahmedabad, July 18: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Tuesday thanked the people of Gujarat for providing him another chance to serve them in the capacity of a Rajya Sabha member. On being elected unopposed to the upper house of Parliament, Jaishankar took to Twitter and appreciated the support of members of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly for his candidature, acknowledging the opportunity given to him by the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to serve the nation.

For Jaishankar, a former career diplomat who entered the political arena and became part of the Union Cabinet in 2019, this marks his second term in the Rajya Sabha representing the BJP-ruled state. The withdrawal of nomination forms took place on Monday, the last date for the process, and as there were no opposing candidates, the need for polling on July 24 was eliminated.

Recently, three candidates from the party, including External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, were declared elected uncontested to the Rajya Sabha, according to officials.

Joining Jaishankar in the Upper House of Parliament for a six-year term are Kesridevsinh Jhala and Babubhai Desai, both BJP candidates.

The uncontested victories of the three candidates were confirmed by Returning Officer Reeta Mehta, who declared them elected on July 17 through a declaration on the National eVidhan Application website.

The decision of the opposition Congress to not field candidates for the three Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat was due to lack of sufficient MLAs in the 182-member Assembly.

Jaishankar submitted his nomination form on July 10, while Jhala and Desai filed theirs on July 12. Two sitting Rajya Sabha MPs from Gujarat, Jugalji Thakor and Dinesh Anavadiya, were not renominated by the BJP. Instead, the party nominated Jhala and Desai for the upcoming term.