BJP Names Rajya Sabha Nominees; Nitin Nabin Headlines Bihar Lineup

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday announced its candidates for the 2026 biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha, fielding nominees from six states, including Bihar, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Odisha and West Bengal. The central election committee approved the names for the upcoming polls on March 16, in a press statement issued from its central office in New Delhi.

From Bihar, the BJP has nominated Nitin Nabin and Shivesh Kumar. Nabin’s candidature assumes added significance as he took over as the BJP’s national president on January 20, marking a generational shift in the party’s top leadership. Bihar’s BJP president Sanjay Saraogi said Upendra Kushwaha will be the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate from the Rashtriya Lok Morcha for the Rajya Sabha elections. Also read: a prominent face from Bihar, Nabin has held key organisational and ministerial responsibilities in the state and is considered close to the party’s central leadership. The second nominee from Bihar, Shivesh Kumar, is regarded as an organisational hand with experience in state-level party affairs.

In Assam, the BJP has fielded Terash Gowalla and Jogen Mohan, both of whom have been associated with the party’s expansion in the Northeast. From Chhattisgarh, Laxmi Verma has been named as the candidate, while Haryana will see Sanjay Bhatia in the fray. For Odisha, the party has nominated Manmohan Samal and Sujeet Kumar. In West Bengal, Rahul Sinha has been named as the BJP’s candidate for the Upper House.

The Rajya Sabha biennial elections are conducted to fill seats of members whose terms are set to expire, with legislators in the respective state assemblies voting to elect the candidates. While the BJP enjoys comfortable numbers in some states, contests in others could hinge on the numbers in state assemblies.

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