Congress, JD(U) to share Rajya Sabha seats; Antony may be renominated

February 26, 2016 12:00 am | Updated 05:49 am IST - Thiruvananthapuram:

The Congress and the Janata Dal (United) will contest two of the three Rajya Sabha seats that the United Democratic Front can win on the basis of its strength in the State Assembly. The Congress is sure to renominate its senior leader A.K. Antony, while the JD(U) will field M.P. Veerendrakumar.

The decision on the sharing of the Rajya Sabha seats was hurriedly taken at a meeting of UDF leaders here on Thursday.

There are three vacancies from the State caused by the retirement of Mr. Antony and CPI(M) members T.N. Seema and K.N. Balagopal.

The decision to accommodate the JD(U) has been taken ostensibly to ensure that the party stays put in the ruling coalition and comes as a fulfilment of the promises Congress leaders appear to have made on several occasions in the past. The JD (U) had sought for either the Wayanad or Vadakara Lok Sabha seat in the 2014 elections.

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