The BJP will be contesting all Rajya Sabha seats in Jammu and Kashmir scheduled for election on October 24.
“We have decided to contest all seats,” party spokesperson Sunil Sethi said at a Jammu press conference.
By-election announced for 4 Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu & Kashmir. Voting and counting to be held on October 24th. All four seats have been vacant since February 2021. pic.twitter.com/N3723LrGGi
— ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2025
The NC-led alliance is set to win at least three of the four seats, but the BJP has decided to field candidates against the alliance in those constituencies where its chances of winning are slim.
The party is likely to field a strong candidate for one of the seats where its chances of a win are strong.
Sethi added that the party believes in the credibility of the candidate rather than the name to represent it in the Rajya Sabha.
“It is about individuals who can effectively represent the party,” the BJP spokesperson said.
He added that the views of the party’s core group in Jammu and Kashmir would be conveyed to the party’s central leadership.
Former BJP president Ravinder Raina and former deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh are considered among the frontrunners.
Sethi himself is a strong candidate. Party insiders say that he will be one of the two MLAs from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) to be nominated to the Assembly by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
Five MLAs will be nominated to the Assembly: two from PoJK, one woman, and two migrant Kashmiri Pandits (one of whom is a woman).
In the 90-member House, the NC-led alliance holds 53 members, while the BJP has 28. The PDP has three members, while the PC, AIP, and AAP have one member each. There is also one independent member.
Sethi addressed the press after a meeting attended by Union Minister Jitendra Singh, BJP national general secretary, and J&K in-charge Tarun Chugh. However, Leader of the Opposition Sunil Kumar Sharma was not present.
The Rajya Sabha election for four seats in Jammu and Kashmir is being held a year after the assembly elections in the region.
In the recent election for Vice President, only six Lok Sabha members cast their ballot. The Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant from Jammu and Kashmir on February 2021. |
