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Today, key Congress members will gather to approve the manifesto; the poll panel may clear more names.

The party’s highest executive body will also debate and vote on a motion regarding electoral bond data.

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) will meet on Tuesday morning for the last time before the general election to approve the party’s poll manifesto, among other things. In the evening, the central election committee is expected to clear the candidate list for the first phase of the polls scheduled on April 19, functionaries said.

Congress members will gather

The working committee meeting, set for 10 a.m., is expected to focus on endorsing the manifesto. The gathering is also anticipated to approve a resolution recognizing former party head Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, which began in Manipur on January 14 and finished in Mumbai on March 17.

“There are numerous pressing concerns before the party. However, the CWC may be strained for time to examine all contentious issues because the major goal of the conference is to endorse the Congress manifesto,” a committee member said on the condition of anonymity.

The party’s highest executive body will also meet to examine and vote on the electoral bond data. The changes occurred a day after the Election Commission uploaded the data, which was one day before the Supreme Court’s deadline in the high-profile case. Between April 12, 2019, and February 15, 2024, around 1,260 corporations and individuals purchased 22,217 bonds valued at ₹12,155.51 crore.

During this period, 23 political parties redeemed 20,421 bonds worth ₹12,769.09 crore. The Bharatiya Janata Party led the pack with ₹6,061 crore (47.5% of total redeemed value), followed by the Trinamool Congress with ₹1,610 crore (12.6%) and Congress with ₹1,422 crore (11.1%).

The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is set to be another highlight of the gathering, after Gandhi completed the east-to-west part of the march last year.

The party’s poll panel is anticipated to clear the remaining candidates for the first round of the election in 18 states and three Union Territories. The meeting was originally set for March 15, but was canceled because the main leaders were participating in the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

The Congress has cleared 82 individuals in two poll committee meetings. On Tuesday, it will focus on Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, and other states.

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Sonia Gandhi elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan

BJP’s Chunnilal Garasiya and Madan Rathore were also elected unopposed to the Upper House from the state.

Rajya Sabha

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi was elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan on Tuesday, officials said. Bharatiya Janata Party’s Chunnilal Garasiya and Madan Rathore were also elected unopposed to the Upper House from the state, Assembly Secretary Mahaveer Prasad Sharma said. Tuesday was the last day for withdrawing nominations.

As no other candidates were contesting, the three leaders were elected to Rajya Sabha unopposed, the officer said.

The tenure of Rajya Sabha members Manmohan Singh (Congress) and Bhupendra Yadav (BJP) is ending on April 3. The third seat fell vacant after the BJP MP Kirodi Lal Meena resigned from the House in December after being elected MLA.

The BJP has 115 members and the Congress 70 in the 200-member assembly.

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There are 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Rajasthan. After the results, Congress has six members and the BJP four. 

Meanwhile, BJP president JP Nadda and three other candidates of the party were declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat on Tuesday. There were four vacant Rajya Sabha seats in the state and as many candidates, all of the ruling BJP, had filed their nomination papers.

As no other candidates had filed nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha elections from Gujarat on four vacant seats, Returning Officer Reeta Mehta declared all the four BJP candidates, including Nadda, elected unopposed to the Upper House of Parliament, an official said.

Tuesday was the last date of withdrawal of nomination forms.

Apart from Nadda, the three others candidates elected unopposed to the upper hpuse were diamond baron Govindbhai Dholakia, BJP leaders Jasvantsinh Parmar and Mayank Nayak. 

With inputs from PTI

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