Kolkata: The Election Commission of India on Friday announced the by-election to a Rajya Sabha seat from Bengal that was vacated by the resignation of the then Trinamool Congress MP Dinesh Trivedi in February.
The ECI said the poll and counting would be held on August 9. Trivedi had resigned from the Rajya Sabha on February 12, while the term was up to April 2, 2026. He then joined the BJP in March.
The submission of the nomination will begin on July 22 and end on July 29. The election will be held on August 9 and the result will be announced on the same day, said Partha Chatterjee, minister for Parliamentary Affairs, on Friday.
Two Rajya Sabha seats in Bengal fell vacant after Trivedi joined the BJP and Manas Bhuniya resigned and participated in the Assembly election. Bhuniya is now the state minister for Water Resources Investigation and Development.
Chatterjee said it would have been excellent if the election to both the seats could be held. The ECI had written a letter to the state Chief Secretary, wanting to know if the Rajya Sabha election could be held in view of the Covid situation. The Chief Secretary replied that as steps had already been taken to control the spread of the infection, election could be held.
A six-member TMC delegation comprising Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs met Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra in New Delhi on Thursday and submitted a memorandum requesting him to hold by-polls in seven Assembly seats that fell vacant along with the Rajya Sabha election.