Results of Rajya Sabha Elections:
Rajya Sabha elections to 19 seats were held on June 19th, 2020. While the biennial polls were announced for 61 seats (including 55 in March), 42 members were elected unopposed earlier.
The state-wise split of 19 seats which went for the election was as follows:
State Seats contested
Andhra Pradesh 4
Gujarat 4
Madhya Pradesh 3
Rajasthan 3
Jharkhand 2
Meghalaya 1
Manipur 1
Mizoram 1
Prior to the elections, BJP had 75 (while NDA as a whole had 90 members) out of 245 members in Rajya Sabha. In these elections, out of the 19 seats, BJP won 8 seats, Congress and YSR Congress won 4 seats each, while others won 3.
In key states like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan, BJP did well. In Madhya Pradesh, BJP won 2 seats, while Congress won 1 seat. In Gujarat, prior to elections, Congress witnessed the exit of 8 of its MLAs. BJP won 3 out of the 4 seats in Gujarat, while Congress bagged 1 seat. In Rajasthan, Congress retained 2 seats, while BJP won 1 seat.
In Andhra Pradesh, YSR Congress won all the 4 seats. In Jharkhand, BJP and JMM won 1 seat each. TDP infighting and revolt was clearly visible, while the lone Jana Sena MLA declared support for YSRCP.
Manipur saw high political drama just prior to the elections, in which Congress had attempted to steal disgruntled BJP legislators. As far as appearances went, the media had already written the obituary of the Manipur coalition government (BJP-ruled). However, in a surprise move and management by senior BJP leaders like Amit Shah and Ram Madhav, the BJP finally won the lone seat of Manipur. Even after this, critics continued to predict the downfall of the government. This did not happen and the situation was speedily stabilized.
As of now, BJP currently has 86 members in Rajya Sabha, while Congress has 41. NDA, as a whole, now has nearly 100 members in the Upper House. If the support of friendly parties like AIADMK (9), BJD (9), YSR Congress Party (6) etc. is counted, then the government will not face any major difficulties in passing its planned legislations through the Upper House.
After the election results, while BJP got a good boost in its tally in the Rajya Sabha, it is still short of achieving majority on its own.
