After a thumping victory in Punjab Assembly polls, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday announced that it has nominated former cricketer Harbhajan Singh and Delhi MLA Raghav Chadha to Rajya Sabha from Punjab.
Harbhajan made his debut in 1998 and the last international match he played was in 2016 but official retirement was announced in 2021.
Chadha is an MLA from Delhi’s Rajinder Nagar and party’s co-incharge in Punjab. Besides these two, Aam Aadmi Party has nominated Dr Sandeep Pathak to Rajya Sabha. He camped in Punjab for nearly three years and formed an organization at the booth level.
Aam Aadmi Party also nominated Chancellor of Lovely Professional University (LPU), Ashok Mittal to the Upper House. He is known for his work in the field of education – one category of the poll promises of AAP – and social services. Aam Aadmi Party also nominated founder of Krishna Pran Breast Cancer Care Charitable Trust, Sanjiv Arora to Rajya Sabha.
AAP swept the recent state Assembly elections securing 92 of the 117-member House. The five Punjab vacancies are arising due to the term of the following Rajya Sabha MPs ending on April 9. The last day for filing the nominations is Monday.
Congress leaders Partap Singh Bajwa and SS Dullo, BJP’s Shwait Malik, SAD’s Naresh Gujral and SS Dhindsa from SAD-Sanyukt are the five Rajya Sabha MPs whose term is approaching the end. In all, Punjab has seven seats in the Upper House.
The term of SAD’s Balwinder Singh Bhunder and Congress leader Ambika Soni, who are also Rajya Sabha MPs from Punjab, will end on July 4. Elections to these two seats would be held later this year.
