News Desk: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has nominated Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri as its candidate for the upcoming Rajya Sabha by-election from Madhya Pradesh. The seat fell vacant after former Union minister of state for information and broadcasting L Murugan resigned from the Upper House.
The by-election is scheduled to take place on November 12, 2026.
Puri’s nomination comes as his current term as a Rajya Sabha member from Uttar Pradesh is due to end in November. Earlier this month, the BJP did not renominate him from Uttar Pradesh, choosing instead to field eight new candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in the state.
The party’s decision to nominate Puri from Madhya Pradesh provides him with an opportunity to continue as a member of Parliament’s Upper House. Further details regarding the election process are expected to emerge as the by-election approaches.
Murugan resigned from both the Rajya Sabha and the Union Council of Ministers, even though his parliamentary term was originally scheduled to continue until 2030. In his resignation letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Murugan said he wanted to focus on political activities in Tamil Nadu.
His resignation created the vacancy that has now prompted the by-election in Madhya Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the BJP recently secured eight Rajya Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, while the Samajwadi Party won two. All 10 candidates from the state were declared elected unopposed after the withdrawal deadline passed on October 9.
The BJP candidates elected from Uttar Pradesh were Dharampal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopi Krishna Pandey, Priyanka Singh Rawat, Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan and Shruti Gangwar.
The Samajwadi Party’s elected candidates were Ram Gopal Yadav and Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani.
With Puri now nominated for the Madhya Pradesh seat, the upcoming by-election will determine whether he secures another term in the Rajya Sabha. The contest is part of the BJP’s broader efforts to manage its representation in Parliament while preparing for political developments in several states.
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