Saleem Ahmed confident of winning RS, MLC seats, eyes cabinet berth

Congress leader Saleem Ahmed expressed confidence in the party winning all upcoming Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha seats in Karnataka. He also voiced his hope for a cabinet position, as parties gear up for the June 18 elections.

Congress leader Saleem Ahmed on Saturday expressed confidence in the party's prospects in the upcoming Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha elections. Speaking to reporters, Ahmed said, "Our fifth MLC candidate will file his nomination on Monday. We are fully confident that we will win all the Rajya Sabha and MLC seats."

He further added that decisions on ministerial positions would be made by the party's high command and the Chief Minister. "The party High Command and the CM will decide who should become a Minister. I am confident that I will get an opportunity in the cabinet this time," he said.

Ahmed's remarks come amid heightened political activity in Karnataka as parties prepare for upcoming Council elections, with Congress aiming to consolidate its strength.

Earlier on Friday, All India Congress Committee (AICC) President Mallikarjun Kharge filed his nomination papers for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections from Karnataka at the Vidhana Soudha complex here.

The nomination filing took place at the office of the Returning Officer in the Vidhana Soudha complex.

Parties Announce Rajya Sabha Candidates

The Congress on Thursday released its list of seven candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, scheduled to be held on June 18. The party has also nominated Mansoor Ali Khan and Pawan Khera from Karnataka, Meenakshi Natarajan from Madhya Pradesh. Neeraj Dangi has been nominated from Rajasthan, while Praveen Chakravarty has been fielded from Tamil Nadu and Pranav Jha from Jharkhand.

On Thursday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also released its list of 11 candidates. The list features several prominent state leaders, organisational heavyweights, and key strategists as the party looks to consolidate its upper-house strength. The BJP has fielded Tai Tagak from Arunachal Pradesh; Rajubhai Shukla, Mukeshbhai Rathwa, Mansingh Parmar and Jitendra Meghjibhai Kanzariya from Gujarat; Tarun Chugh and Rajneesh Agrawal from Madhya Pradesh; A Sharda Devi from Manipur; and Alka Gurjar and Satish Poonia from Rajasthan. For the Rajya Sabha by-election in Odisha, the party has nominated Debashish Samantaray as its candidate.

ECI Notifies Biennial Elections

Earlier, on June 3, the Election Commission issued a notification for biennial elections to 24 Rajya Sabha seats from ten states. This includes four seats each in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, three seats each in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, two seats in Jharkhand, and one seat each in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur and Meghalaya. The filing of nominations has begun, and the last date is June 8. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)