BJP’s Kanad Purkayastha and Asom Gana Parishad’s Birendra Prasad Baishya have been elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Assam today.
This marks the parliamentary debut of Kanad Purkayastha, who currently serves as the BJP’s state secretary. Assam has a total of seven Rajya Sabha seats. The BJP currently holds four, while its allies, the AGP and the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL), hold one each. The remaining seat is held by an Independent member.
According to officials, no opposition parties filed nominations for the Rajya Sabha elections. The last date for filing nominations was Thursday. “Kanad Purkayastha from BJP and Birendra Prasad Baishya from AGP have been declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha as no opposing candidate was nominated,” the official stated.
The elections for two Rajya Sabha seats, originally scheduled for June 19, were rendered unnecessary due to the unopposed elections. Kanad Purkayastha will be a Rajya Sabha member for the first time. He is the son of Kabindra Purkayastha, a senior BJP leader and former Union Minister, and hails from Silchar. Currently, Kanad serves as the secretary of the BJP’s Assam unit.
Birendra Prasad Baishya, a senior leader of the AGP and former Union Minister, is entering the Rajya Sabha for the third time. Baishya has also served as a Lok Sabha member in the past.