BJP candidates – External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the party’s OBC Cell member Jugalkishore Thakor – have won both Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat. While Mr Jaishankar defeated Gaurav Pandya, Mr Thakore defeated Chandrika Chudasama, both from the Congress.
According to the Election Commission, Jaishankar bagged 104 votes, four more than the 100 BJP legislators in the state.
Two rebel Congress MLAs, Alpesh Thakor and his close aide Dhavalsinh Jhala, cross-voted for the BJP. One MLA each from Bharatiya Tribal Party and Nationalist Congress Party also voted for the BJP candidate.
Mr Alpesh Thakor and Mr Jhala subsequently resigned as MLAs.
The two Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant after Union ministers Amit Shah and Smriti Irani elected to Lok Sabha during recent Parliamentary elections.
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