BJP Names Nitin Nabin, Eight Others for Rajya Sabha Polls; JDU Suspense Over Bihar Seats Continues

BJP national president Nitin Nabin is set to enter Parliament for the first time, with the party naming him as one of nine candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections to 37 seats across 10 states. The list is heavy on first-timers with strong organisational pedigrees — but the bigger political suspense surrounds Bihar ally JDU, which is yet to declare its nominees amid growing speculation over whether Nitish Kumar's son Nishant Kumar could make his political debut.

BJP has named both its Bihar candidates — party president Nabin, a fifth-term Kayastha MLA making his first entry into Parliament, and Shivesh Kumar, a Dalit leader who narrowly lost the Sasaram Lok Sabha seat in 2024. The announcement puts pressure on JDU, which is yet to officially declare its choices.

Within JDU, two currents are pulling in opposite directions. A significant faction is pushing for Nishant Kumar — son of CM Nitish Kumar, whose five-decade public career has been defined in part by vocal opposition to dynastic politics. That Nitish himself is now facing internal pressure to endorse his son's entry reflects the tension between ideological commitment and ground-level political realities, compounded by concerns over the CM's own health. Meanwhile, the party is expected to retain Union Minister Ram Nath Thakur — son of socialist icon Karpoori Thakur — but may drop Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Harivansh, both of whom have served two consecutive RS terms. Upendra Kushwaha is set to be repeated as the NDA's fifth Bihar candidate, though opposition parties may contest that seat despite the alliance's perceived numerical advantage.

Beyond Bihar, BJP has fielded Assam MLAs Terash Gowalla and Jogen Mohan from the poll-bound northeastern state, former Lok Sabha MP Sanjay Bhatia from Haryana — who had previously vacated the Karnal seat for now-Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar — Odisha state president Manmohan Samal, and former West Bengal BJP president Rahul Sinha. From Odisha, Sujeet Kumar — who quit the BJD after the state assembly elections — is the only repeat candidate on the list. Laxmi Verma of Chhattisgarh, a Kurmi leader who has risen through the party's ranks, is the sole woman on BJP's current list. The party is yet to release its Maharashtra nominees, where seven seats are falling vacant and the ruling alliance is expected to capture six.

BJP functionaries described the list as a deliberate effort to groom a new generation of organisational hands for key parliamentary roles, with the leadership prioritising experienced ground-level workers over established public figures.