New Delhi. Voting is today for 15 Rajya Sabha seats from UP, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh. The contest in UP is between BJP and Samajwadi Party. At the same time, in Karnataka, the candidates of ruling Congress and BJP-JDS are face to face. Whereas, there is a contest between the ruling Congress and BJP in Himachal Pradesh. Voting on Rajya Sabha seats is not done directly but according to a formula. The number of 1 is added to the number of Rajya Sabha seats vacant in the concerned state. After this, the number 1 is again added to the number that comes after dividing the total number by the assembly seats. According to this, the number of votes required for each seat is decided.
Voting slip and special pen are used to vote. In the voting slip, the MLA has to write his preference against the names of the candidates. That means he has to tell which candidates he is voting for as per his first, second and third preference. Votes are counted accordingly. MLAs can also do cross voting in Rajya Sabha elections. The whip of any party does not work in these elections. If an MLA votes for a candidate of another party instead of his own party, then the anti-defection law does not apply to him. In such a situation his membership is not in danger. However, the MLA has to show his vote to the polling agent of his party. If he does not do so, his vote is considered void.
If we look at today’s Rajya Sabha elections, there is a contest between BJP and Samajwadi Party on maximum 10 seats in UP. BJP has fielded 8 candidates and Samajwadi Party has fielded 3 candidates. At the same time, 5 candidates are in the fray for 4 seats in Karnataka. Whereas, BJP and Congress candidates are contesting Rajya Sabha elections for 1 seat in Himachal Pradesh.