BJP releases RS candidates from UP, dropped 8 sitting MPs

The BJP on Monday announced eight names for the coming Rajya Sabha election from Uttar Pradesh. The list drops all sitting MPs, including Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma out of its Rajya Sabha nominations from Uttar Pradesh. Arun Singh, Seema Dwivedi, Neeraj Shekhar, Brij Lal and Geeta Shakya also do not figure on the list. Dinesh Sharma, who previously held a Rajya Sabha seat from the state, is now the LG of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.The candidates named include minister Dharampal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, former MLC Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopi Krishna Pandey, Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan, former Lok Sabha MP Priyanka Singh Rawat and Jharkhand Governor Santosh Gangwar's daughter Shruti Gangwar.It includes three OBC candidates, two Scheduled Caste candidates and three upper-caste candidates. Two nominees are women.

भारतीय जनता पार्टी की केंद्रीय चुनाव समिति ने उत्तर प्रदेश में होने वाले राज्यसभा द्विवार्षिक चुनाव 2026 हेतु निम्नलिखित नामों पर अपनी स्वीकृति प्रदान की है। https://t.co/8TB5Bp8VGM

— BJP (@BJP4India) October 5, 2026

Ten seats in the state are up for election on October 16. The BJP is certain to win seven seats, and is pushing for an eighth. "Heartfelt congratulations to all the esteemed candidates announced today. Infinite best wishes for the historic victory of each one of you," Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said in a post on X.