AAP candidates noted environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal and entrepreneur-
social activist Vikramjit Singh Sahney have been elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha
from Punjab.
Friday was the last day for the withdrawal of candidature for June 10 polls and no
candidates took back their names till 3 pm. Seechewal and Sahney have been
declared winners unopposed, Returning Officer-cum-Secretary, Punjab Vidhan Sabha,
Surinder Pal said.
The Aam Aadmi Party had nominated Seechewal and Sahney for the two Rajya Sabha
seats from the state. The term of Rajya Sabha members from Punjab Ambika Soni
(Congress) and Balwinder Singh Bhunder (Shiromani Akali Dal) is due to expire on July 4.
The last day for filling the nominations was May 31 while the scrutiny of nominations
was done on June 1.
Seechewal is known for his efforts to clean the 160-km long holy rivulet Kali Bein rivulet
in Kapurthala's Sultanpur Lodhi. Known as 'Eco Baba', he was hailed as one of the top
30 'Heroes of the Environment' in the world by Times Magazine.
Vikramjit Singh Sahney is an entrepreneur, philanthropist and social activist. He is the
international president of the World Punjabi Organisation which is functional in 22
countries with an aim to foster social, economic and cultural bonds. Sahney had helped
in evacuating 500 Afghan Hindus and Sikhs by sending three chartered flights at his
own expense to Kabul in Afghanistan after its Taliban takeover. He had also
coordinated with various ministries like External Affairs for their immediate evacuation.
In March, the AAP had nominated former cricketer Harbhajan Singh, AAP leader
Raghav Chadha, Lovely Professional University founder Ashok Mittal, former IIT Delhi
faculty Sandeep Pathak and industrialist Sanjeev Arora for Rajya Sabha. They all were
elected unopposed.