The Left Democratic Front-backed Independent candidate, M.P. Veerendrakumar, was declared elected to the Rajya Sabha in the elections held for the lone seat from Kerala on Friday. Mr. Veerendrakumar, who is the State president of the Janata Dal (U) Sharad Yadav faction, secured 89 votes while B. Babu Prasad of the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) got 40 votes.
In the 140-member Assembly, the LDF has 90 legislators and the Opposition UDF 41. One vote of the LDF legislator was declared invalid. UDF legislator T. A. Ahammed Kaber (Muslim League) could not attend the voting as he was indisposed.
Kerala Congress (M), which has six MLAs, abstained from voting. The lone BJP legislator, O. Rajagopal, and P. C. George, Independent, also refrained from exercising their franchise. The Chengannur seat is lying vacant following the death of K. K. Ramachandran Nair. The result was declared by Returning Officer and Legislature Secretary V. K. Babu Prakash after the voting that began at 9 a.m ended at 5 p.m. and after getting clearance from the Election Commission.
A petition by the UDF candidate’s chief agent Sunny Joseph and agent Anwar Sadath that the votes of the CPI, JD(S) and the NCP legislators should not be counted since their polling agents were not posted were dismissed by the Returning Officer. The Election Commission also rejected the appeal of the UDF. The vacancy for the lone Rajya Sabha seat arose when JD (U) leader Mr. Veerendrakumar resigned his seat in December last after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar decided to join the NDA bandwagon. Later, Mr. Veerendrakumar left the UDF expressing his intention to join the LDF.
Mr. Veerendrakumar, 81, had earlier twice been a member of the Lok Sabha. As a Rajya Sabha member, Mr. Veerendrakumar will have term till April 2, 2022.
