Will Nitin Nabeen Skip Rajya Sabha? The Amit Shah–Gadkari ‘Formula’ in Focus

Patna:  Bihar’s political circles are abuzz over the five Rajya Sabha seats set to fall vacant soon. The biggest question doing the rounds is: whom will the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominate for the two seats expected to come its way?

Speculation intensified after Nitin Nabeen was appointed the BJP’s National Working President, with many assuming that one Rajya Sabha berth was almost certain for him. However, party sources suggest the picture may not be so straightforward. There is a growing possibility that Nabin may not be sent to the Rajya Sabha at all.

The reason being cited within party circles is an old BJP “practice” — or what some are calling a “formula” — previously seen during the tenures of senior leaders like Nitin Gadkari and Amit Shah.

National Presidents Who Continued as MLAs

It is not unusual in the BJP for a leader to hold the post of national president while continuing as a Member of a Legislative Assembly or Council for years.

Nitin Gadkari is a prominent example. Having begun his political journey with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), Gadkari served as BJP National President from January 1, 2010, to January 22, 2013. At the time, he was a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. In other words, he remained in a state legislature while holding the party’s top organisational post. He later entered Parliament after winning the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Nagpur.

Similarly, Amit Shah served as BJP National President from 2014 to 2020. During much of this period, he was an MLA from the Naranpura Assembly constituency in Gujarat. From 2012 to 2017, he simultaneously handled responsibilities as both MLA and national president before eventually moving to the Rajya Sabha and later the Lok Sabha.

Will Nitin Nabeen Follow the Same Path?

Against this backdrop, Nitin Nabeen’s name is now central to discussions. The argument within sections of the party is that if leaders like Gadkari and Shah could effectively function as national presidents while remaining MLAs, there is no compulsion for Nabin to move to the Rajya Sabha at this stage.

The BJP has often balanced organisational responsibilities and elected posts strategically. Party leadership may prefer that Nabin continues to serve both as an MLA and as a key organisational figure for now.

Rajya Sabha Math and BJP Strategy

With five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar up for election, the BJP is also weighing broader social and political equations. The party may use this opportunity to accommodate new faces, ensure regional representation, or strike a social balance in its nominations.

This is why, despite the buzz around Nitin Nabeen’s name, multiple factors are likely to influence the final decision. What is clear for now is that discussions around the “Amit Shah–Gadkari model” have added an extra layer of intrigue to the Rajya Sabha calculations in Bihar.