AICC Chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Telangana In-Charge Meenakshi Natarajan Among Congress Nominees for Rajya Sabha

New Delhi: The Congress party on Friday announced its candidates for the upcoming biennial and by-elections to the Rajya Sabha, fielding All India Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge from Karnataka and senior spokesperson Pawan Khera among seven nominees cleared by the party’s central leadership.

The list was approved by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and released by AICC general secretary KC Venugopal.

According to the announcement, Karnataka will account for three Congress candidates, with Mallikarjun Kharge, Pawan Khera and Mansoor Ali Khan being nominated for the Upper House elections from the state.

The party has nominated its Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan from Madhya Pradesh, Neeraj Dangi from Rajasthan, Praveen Chakravarty from Tamil Nadu and Pranav Jha from Jharkhand.

The nominations come ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled to fill vacancies arising from the retirement of members from various states.

Kharge’s candidature from Karnataka is expected to reinforce the party’s position in a state where it currently heads the government. The nomination of Pawan Khera, one of the party’s most visible national spokespersons, signals the leadership’s intent to strengthen its voice in Parliament.

Meenakshi Natarajan, a former Lok Sabha member and long-time Congress leader, has been chosen from Madhya Pradesh, while Rajasthan’s sitting Rajya Sabha member Neeraj Dangi has been renominated.

In Tamil Nadu, the party has fielded Praveen Chakravarty, chairman of the AICC’s Data Analytics Department, while Pranav Jha has been nominated from Jharkhand.

The Congress list reflects a mix of organisational leaders, parliamentary voices and political strategists as the party prepares for the next phase of parliamentary engagement and political mobilisation.

Congress Rajya Sabha Candidates