The BJP has nominated Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri for the November 12 Rajya Sabha bypoll in Madhya Pradesh
The bypoll follows L Murugan’s resignation from the Rajya Sabha and the Union Council of Ministers on October 14, although his parliamentary term was due to run until April 2030
Puri’s current Rajya Sabha term from Uttar Pradesh ends on November 25, after the BJP excluded him from its latest list of nominees from the state
After days of speculation, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has named Hardeep Singh Puri, union minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas as its candidate for the upcoming Rajya Sabha election in Madhya Pradesh.
The nomination comes at a time when his tenure in Rajya Sabha was coming to an end. Puri currently presides as a member of the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh with his tenure nearing its end on November 25 this year.
The Central Election Committee of the BJP named Puri from Madhya Pradesh with the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll taking place due to the resignation of L Murugan who decided to resign from his post in the council of ministers.
Despite his tenure ending later in April 2030, Murugan resigned from the post earlier this month. He served as the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs as well as Information and Broadcasting.
The speculation over Puri’s fate started after he did not get re-nominated from Uttar Pradesh where Rajya Sabha elections took place recently. It was being speculated that Puri lost his seat in the council of ministers as his name was not included in the list of names announced by the BJP leadership for the Rajya Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh.
Since the BJP enjoys a clear majority in Madhya Pradesh, Puri will have an easy victory in the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls. The polling for the Rajya Sabha elections will take place on November 12 and the last date of filing nomination is November 2. The counting of votes is scheduled to take place on November 16.
Puri is a 1974 batch India Foreign Service (IFS) officer and he has served as Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations from 2009 to 2013. He has been part of the council of minister under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has also served union minister of State for Civil Aviation (Independent Charge) and Commerce and Industry.
Puri has also served as union minister for housing and urban affairs and later became union minister for petroleum and natural gas after the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) returned to power in 2024.
