Former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit who is virtually out in the wilderness after the Delhi Assembly debacle losing her own seat to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, is now eyeing a Rajya Sabha berth. The poll for vacancies in the upper house will take on February 7. While Dikshit was looking at a Central role she had recently admitted that she would not be contesting the Lok Sabha polls. Haryana and Himachal Pradesh two states from where she was hoping to get a berth are reportedly not too keen on accommodating her.
Speaking to Business Standard Dikshit had said, “Am definitely not fighting the Lok Sabha polls” but significantly had not ruled out a role for herself at the Centre. So with Rajya Sabha vacancies coming up in 16 states, Dikshit was keen on making it through either neighbouring Haryana or Himachal Pradesh. While Haryana had two vacancies, Himachal has one vacancy.
In Haryana, which goes into Assembly polls next year, the state unit was not willing to give out one of its Rajya Sabha seats to an outsider from the state. In Himachal the state PCC chief Sukshwinder Singh Sukhu himself was attempting to contest the sole Rajya Sabha seat from the seat. However as chief minister Virbhadra Singh was not too eager for Sukhu as candidate, Dikshit’s chances say Congress sources cannot be entirely ruled out.
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