Bhopal: BJP candidates Kavita Patidar and Sumitra Valmiki filed their nominations from Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls set to take place on June 10. While Patidar, an OBC candidate, is currently serving as the party's Indore district panchayat chairperson, Valmiki is the vice president of the state unit and is a well-known Dalit face in Madhya Pradesh. The move comes prior to the 2023 Madhya Pradesh Assembly Elections and 2024 General Elections.
The duo was accompanied by MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and state BJP President VD Sharma on their way to file nominations. Prior to this, Patidar handled the post of state general secretary for two years. Notably, Patidar's father, Bherulal Patidar, was a minister during the Sundarlal Patwa government, and also the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. Valmiki, on the other hand, has served both as a councillor and as the President of Jabalpur Municipal Corporation.
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The nominations can be withdrawn by June 3. Out of the total 11 Rajya Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh, the BJP holds eight, while Congress holds three. At present, the BJP's Rajya Sabha members from the state are Union Ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia, L Murugan and Dharmendra Pradhan, former central minister M J Akbar, Ajay Pratap Singh, Kailash Soni, Sumer Singh Solanki and Sampatiya Uike.
