Jaipur: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan on Monday.
Since the Bharatiya Janata Party did not put up any candidate due to lack of numbers in the assembly, Manmohan Singh was declared elected after the scheduled time to withdraw nominations ended on Monday.
Chief whip Mahesh Joshi accepted the certificate of election on behalf of the former Prime Minister.
The seat had fallen vacant due to the death of sitting member, BJP state chief Madan Lal Saini.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Assembly Speaker C.P. Joshi congratulated Manmohan Singh,
"I congratulate former PM Dr #ManmohanSingh ji on being elected unopposed as a member of #RajyaSabha from #Rajasthan. Dr Singh's election is a matter of pride for entire state. His vast knowledge and rich experience would benefit the people of Rajasthan a lot," Gehlot said in a tweet.
"Many congratulations to the the world renowned economist Dr Manmohan Singh for being elected unopposed as Rajya Sabha MP," the Speaker tweeted.
With Manmohan Singh's election, the Congress now has one MP from the state. It had drawn a blank in the April-May Lok Sabha elections.