Mallikarjun Kharge and Three Others Unanimously Elected to Rajya Sabha from Karnataka
Praveen Chakravarty was declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Tamil Nadu, while AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge and three others were elected unanimously from Karnataka. Both elections resulted from vacancies or expiring terms, with all rival nominations either rejected or withdrawn. The outcomes reflect the strength of ruling coalition arithmetic in both states, with no votes ultimately required in either election.
In Tamil Nadu, Returning Officer P. Thenmozhi declared Congress nominee Praveen Chakravarty elected unopposed to the lone vacant Rajya Sabha seat on June 11, 2026. The vacancy arose after AIADMK leader C.Ve. Shanmugam resigned from the Upper House following his election to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. Chakravarty's election was made possible by TVK, led by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay, which allocated the seat to Congress as a post-poll ally despite Congress holding only five state assembly seats. In Karnataka, AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge secured re-election to the Rajya Sabha alongside Congress's Mansoor Ali Khan and Pawan Khera, and BJP's M Nagaraja, after an independent candidate's nomination was rejected during scrutiny. All four Karnataka candidates were declared elected unanimously ahead of the scheduled June 18 vote. Chakravarty, who will become the third Congress MP from Tamil Nadu in the Rajya Sabha, said he intends to oppose central legislation he views as infringing on states' rights.
What's missing
The articles do not clarify the specific Bills Chakravarty referenced as threats to states' rights, nor do they detail the grounds on which the 12 independent nominations in Tamil Nadu were rejected during scrutiny.
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