BJP pits Neeraj Shekhar as its candidate for Rajya Sabha bypoll from Uttar Pradesh

Neeraj Shekhar, the son of late Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar who left the Samajwadi Party and joined BJP, was on Thursday announced as the saffron party's candidate for Rajya Sabha bypoll from Uttar Pradesh. The bypoll was necessitated due to his resignation from the Rajya Sabha to join the ruling party.

In a statement, the BJP named him as its candidate for the seat for the bypoll to be held on August 26. His win is all but certain due to the overwhelming majority the party enjoys in the state Assembly.

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The BJP is likely to field defectors from other parties, including former Congress leader Sanjay Sinh and former SP leader Surendra Nagar, as its candidates for the coming bypolls to the House from the state.

Both Sinh and Nagar had resigned from their Rajya Sabha membership to join the BJP.