The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday named Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha by-election from Madhya Pradesh, PTI reported. The by-election is scheduled for November 12.

Source: PTI via Daily World

The seat fell vacant after BJP leader L. Murugan vacated it earlier in October. Murugan also resigned from the Council of Ministers, a move that had sparked speculation about a possible Cabinet reshuffle in the NDA government at the Centre, The Daily Jagran and 7Globe reported.

Source: The Daily Jagran

Puri is currently a Rajya Sabha member from Uttar Pradesh, and his term there is scheduled to end on November 25 this year. He has held a seat from Uttar Pradesh since 2018, when he won a by-election after Manohar Parrikar resigned to become Goa Chief Minister.

Earlier this month, when the BJP released its list of candidates for the Rajya Sabha elections from Uttar Pradesh, Puri's name did not feature in it. The party named eight fresh candidates from the state and did not renominate any of its outgoing MPs, which had sparked speculation about Puri's future in the party and in the Union Cabinet.

Wednesday's nomination from Madhya Pradesh settles that speculation for now: if elected on November 12, Puri will continue in the Upper House without a break, even as his Uttar Pradesh term runs out on November 25. ANI reported that the BJP's central election panel approved his name for the by-election.

Source: ANI via Inshorts

Given the BJP's strength in the Madhya Pradesh assembly, which elects the state's Rajya Sabha members, Puri's election is widely expected, though the formal result will come only after polling and counting on November 12.