The ruling BJP and the opposition CPI(M) on Tuesday separately announced their candidates for the lone Rajya Sabha seat in Tripura, for which election would be held on September 3.

BJP General Secretary (headquarters) Arun Singh announced Rajib Bhattacharjee’s name in New Delhi along with the nominees for eight other RS candidates in seven different states while CPI(M) Tripura state Secretary Jitendra Chaudhury announced Sudhan Das’s name as party nominee.

A Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) loyalist for the past 36 years Bhattacharjee, currently President of the ruling BJP’s Tripura state committee, unsuccessfully contested the last year’s Assembly election in the Banamalipur constituency.

Bhattacharjee’s election to the upper house is almost certain as the BJP has 33 members in the 60-member assembly while its two allies – Tipra-Motha  and Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) have 13 and one seats respectively.

The opposition CPI(M) has 10 MLAs and the Congress has  3 more MLAs.

Former Minister and Congress working committee member Sudip Roy Barman said that they would discuss in the party forum about supporting the CPI(M) nominee.

The CPI(M) and the Congress fought the last year’s assembly polls and in the recent Lok Sabha elections in a seat sharing adjustments.

Unlike many senior and prominent faces in the BJP-led government in Tripura, Bhattacharjee, 52, has always kept a low-key and is a time-tested face for the saffron party, become the state President on August 25, 2022 after his predecessor in the post Dr Manik Saha quit the position to become Chief Minister in mid-term. He joined BJP in 1991.

Left leader Das, 64 is a senior member of CPI (M) Tripura State Secretariat, a prominent Dalit leader, and six time MLA from Rajnagar (SC) Assembly Constituency in Southern Tripura.