By: Express News ServiceJammu | Updated: October 5, 2025 03:24 AM IST 3 min readThe four Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant in February 2021 when terms of PDP MPs — Mir Mohammad Fayaz and Nazir Ahmed Laway — BJP’s Shamsher Singh, and Ghulam Nabi Azad (then Congress) ended.The BJP will contest all four Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu and Kashmir which are scheduled to go to polls on October 24, said Jammu & Kashmir BJP’s chief spokesperson Sunil Sethi Saturday, after the party’s core group meeting was held to discuss various important issues.The meeting was attended by Union Minister Jitendra Singh, BJP national general secretary and party’s Jammu & Kashmir in-charge Tarun Chugh, among others.Sources said that BJP, which has 28 members in the Assembly, can win one of the last two seats for which one single election will be held, but the votes of non-BJP opposition members will significantly influence the outcome.It is likely, sources said, that the party will field a heavyweight candidate for the fourth seat as it will be among the two seats to be filled through one single election.There will be separate elections for the first two seats.The four seats will be filled through three separate elections as required by law since the seats were originally part of three different biennial cycles.Candidates fielded by the ruling National Conference and its allies, having a combined strength of 53 MLAs in the 90-member Assembly, will comfortably get through in both seats.Story continues below this adIn the Opposition corner, BJP has 28 MLAs and the non-BJP Opposition bloc, including PDP, seven. One seat fell vacant following the death of BJP legislator Devender Rana.Unlike in the past when ruling party candidates would get elected unopposed for the first two Rajya Sabha seats, there will be a contest this time since BJP has decided to field candidates for those seats as well.The four Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant in February 2021 when terms of PDP MPs — Mir Mohammad Fayaz and Nazir Ahmed Laway — BJP’s Shamsher Singh, and Ghulam Nabi Azad (then Congress) ended.However, the vacancies could not be filled up as Jammu & Kashmir was under President’s Rule following the 2019 reorganisation of the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir State into two UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.Story continues below this adThe Legislative Assembly in the UT of J&K was constituted after Assembly polls in November 2024. The EC announced on September 25 that elections to the four RS seats would be held on October 24. The last date for filing nominations is October 13 and counting would be taken up in the evening of October 24.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:JammuJammu and Kashmir