Bhopal: Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh Thursday after the nomination papers of two independent candidates were rejected during scrutiny, leaving him as the sole candidate in the by-election.
The by-election was necessitated by the resignation of Union Minister of State L. Murugan, who vacated the Rajya Sabha seat after being elected to the Lok Sabha from Tamil Nadu. His Rajya Sabha term was scheduled to end April 2, 2030.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav congratulated Puri on his unopposed election and said the BJP’s decision to field him from Madhya Pradesh was a matter of pride for the state.
“I am delighted that the Bharatiya Janata Party proposed Hardeep Puri’s name as its candidate from our state. After scrutiny, only one nomination remained valid, and he was elected unopposed. I extend my heartiest congratulations to him,” Yadav said.
Puri’s election followed the rejection of nomination papers filed by two independent candidates, Rajkumar Lohani and Kante Sayanna, during scrutiny.
With no other valid candidate remaining in the contest, Puri was declared elected unopposed. The BJP had announced Puri’s candidature October 28.
He filed his nomination papers October 31 in the presence of Yadav, Deputy Chief Ministers Rajendra Shukla and Jagdish Devda, BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal and other party leaders.
The election certificate was received on Puri’s behalf by Khandelwal from Returning Officer Umesh Kumar Sharma at the Madhya Pradesh Assembly in Bhopal on Thursday.
A former Indian Foreign Service officer, Puri has served as India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and held several important diplomatic assignments during his career.
He entered the Rajya Sabha in 2018 and subsequently joined the Union Council of Ministers. He has held portfolios including Housing and Urban Affairs and Civil Aviation before taking charge of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry in 2021.
Puri’s election comes at a time when the BJP enjoys a comfortable majority in the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly, which elects members to the Rajya Sabha from the state.
