BJP picks EAM Jaishankar as Gujarat RS candidate

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and state secretary of BJP's Other Backward Caste (OBC) Cell Jugalji Thakor have been declared as BJP candidates for the Rajya Sabha by-polls for which polling is scheduled to be held on July 5.

Jaishankar, who officially joined the party on Monday, landed at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport in Ahmedabad in the evening and was received by the minister of state for home Pradipsinh Jadeja. Jugalji Thakor, also known as Lokhandwala, on the other hand, is said to be a surprise pick. He is from north Gujarat's Mehsana district and belongs to Thakor community, which is a dominant community in the region.

BJP leaders said that both the leaders will be filing their nominations on Tuesday morning in Gandhinagar and are expected to address media in the noon. These two seats were declared vacant after BJP chief and union home minister Amit Shah and woman and child development minister Smriti Irani won Lok Sabha elections and resigned from the Rajya Sabha seats.

On the other hand, Congress is yet to decide its candidates but has shortlisted five names that include Manish Doshi, Balubhai Patel, Gaurav Pandya and Karsandas Soneri. However, party sources said that they will decide the final names only after the Supreme Court decision on its petition seeking simultaneous polls.

At present BJP has 104 MLAs while Congress has 71. Two of its MLAs Alpesh Thakor and his close aide Dhavalsinh Zala have resigned from party. If simultaneous voting is held, Congress has a chance of winning one of the two seats but if it is separately, the BJP will win both the seats.