Six TMC candidates submit their nomination for RS polls

Kolkata: Six Rajya Sabha candidates of Trinamool Congress (TMC) that includes one for bye-election submitted their nomination papers on Wednesday at the state legislative Assembly.

Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen who are veterans of Rajya Sabha submitted their nominations again while new faces — Samirul Islam, Prakash Chik Baraik and Saket Gokhale also did the same.

O’Brien has been in the Upper House since 2011, Ray has been there since 2012 and Sen since 2017.

Gokhale is contesting in the bye-elections as a vacancy was created due to the resignation of Louzinho Faleiro whose tenure was till 2026.

Parliamentary Affairs minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, Deputy Chief Whip Tapas Roy, ministers Firhad Hakim, Aroop Biswas were among others who were present in the state Assembly while the six submitted their nominations.

The proposers for Trinamool Congress’s Rajya Sabha candidates had completed the necessary formalities of sending their Upper House members at the state legislative Assembly on Sunday.

The Election Commission of India has recently announced the dates for holding biennial elections to the Council of States to fill the seats of 10 members retiring between July 28 and August 18, 2023. Six among these 10 members are from Bengal. Five of them — Derek O’Brien, Dola Sen, Susmita Dev, Sukhendu Sekhar Ray and Shanta Chhetri are from Trinamool Congress while Pradip Bhattacharjee is from Congress.

The election as well as the bye-election in the Rajya Sabha will be held on July 24.