ECI announces Rajya Sabha, Council biennial polls

Nominations have opened for 27 Rajya Sabha seats and seats in three State Legislative Councils — a routine reminder of how India fills the seats of its upper houses without a single voter walking to a booth.

What happened

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced elections to 27 seats in the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) — both biennial vacancies and bye-elections — together with elections to State Legislative Councils in three states.
• Rajya Sabha: 24 seats fall vacant on the regular biennial cycle across 10 states, plus three bye-elections (one each in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Odisha) to fill mid-term casual vacancies.
• The ten biennial states are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Mizoram.
• Legislative Councils (the seats filled by sitting MLAs): Bihar 9 biennial seats plus 1 bye-election, and Karnataka 7 biennial seats.
• The Commission has issued the election notifications and appointed Returning Officers and Assistant Returning Officers, with the appointments published in the Gazette of India and the State Gazettes.
• Schedule: filing of nominations opened 11:00 AM on 1 June 2026; last date 8 June (3:00 PM); scrutiny 9 June; withdrawal of candidatures 11 June; and, if any seat is contested, polling on 18 June 2026 (8:00 AM–4:00 PM) with counting at 5:00 PM the same day.

The detail that the exam cares about is not the date sheet but the machinery behind it: these are indirect elections. No ordinary citizen votes. The electors are themselves elected representatives — Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs). Understanding why, and exactly how their votes are weighed, is the whole point of this release.

Why route a whole House through the state Assemblies at all? Because the Rajya Sabha is built as the Council of States — the federal chamber that lets the units of the Union shape national law. The strength of each state in the Rajya Sabha is fixed in the Fourth Schedule and is broadly tied to population, so a large state sends more members than a small one. Filling those seats through the elected MLAs of each state keeps the chamber anchored to the states it is meant to represent — which is exactly the design this routine ECI notification keeps running.

For Prelims

• Conductor: the Election Commission of India — the independent constitutional body that superintends, directs and controls elections to Parliament and the State Legislatures, including the indirect elections to the Council of States and the Legislative Councils.
• What is being filled: 27 Rajya Sabha seats (24 biennial across 10 states + 3 bye-elections in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Odisha) and Legislative Council seats in Bihar (9 + 1 bye) and Karnataka (7).
• How Rajya Sabha members are elected: under Article 80(4), the representatives of each state are elected by the elected members of that state's Legislative Assembly through the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote (STV). The voter, in other words, is an MLA, not the public.
• The single transferable vote in one line: each MLA ranks the candidates in order of preference; a candidate needs a fixed quota of votes to win, and surplus votes above the quota (and the votes of eliminated candidates) transfer to the next preference — so seats are shared in rough proportion to party strength in the Assembly rather than going winner-takes-all.
• Composition of the Rajya Sabha (Article 80): a maximum strength of 250 — up to 238 representatives of the states and Union Territories, plus 12 members nominated by the President (for special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art and social service). The present working strength is 245.
• Term & the biennial rhythm (Article 83): the Rajya Sabha is a permanent House — it is not subject to dissolution. Each member serves a six-year term, and one-third of the members retire every second year. That staggered, one-third-every-two-years retirement is exactly why ECI is holding a "biennial" election now.
• The bye-election distinction: the 24 biennial seats arise from members completing their six-year terms; the 3 bye-elections fill casual vacancies created mid-term (by death, resignation or disqualification), and the person elected serves only the remainder of the original term, not a fresh six years.
• State Legislative Councils — what they are: the second/upper chamber of a state legislature (the Vidhan Parishad), which exists only in some states, not all. A state with a Council has a bicameral legislature; most states are unicameral with only a Legislative Assembly.
• Creation/abolition (Article 169): a Council can be created or abolished by Parliament by law, but only after the state's Legislative Assembly passes a resolution to that effect by a special majority (a majority of the total membership of the Assembly and at least two-thirds of those present and voting). Parliament's law for this purpose is not treated as a constitutional amendment under Article 368.
• Composition of a Council (Article 171): the total membership cannot exceed one-third of the Assembly's strength (and cannot be fewer than 40). Its members come through a mix: roughly 1/3 elected by local bodies (municipalities, district boards, etc.), 1/12 by graduates of three years' standing, 1/12 by teachers of three years' standing, 1/3 elected by the MLAs themselves, and the remainder nominated by the Governor (for literature, science, art, the cooperative movement and social service). The seats in this release are the MLA-elected share, which also uses proportional representation by single transferable vote.
• Council term (Article 172): like the Rajya Sabha, a Legislative Council is a continuing body — it is not dissolved; members serve six years and one-third retire every two years. Hence the Bihar and Karnataka biennial Council elections fall in the same window.
• Seat allocation (Fourth Schedule): the number of Rajya Sabha seats each state holds is laid down in the Fourth Schedule and is broadly tied to population — so a Uttar Pradesh sends many more members than a Manipur or Mizoram. This is why "24 biennial seats across 10 states" splits so unevenly between those states.
• Why the Rajya Sabha is not just a duplicate House — its special powers: two powers belong to the Rajya Sabha alone, flowing from its character as the states' chamber. Under Article 249, it can pass a resolution (two-thirds of members present and voting) allowing Parliament to legislate on a State List subject in the national interest; and under Article 312, only the Rajya Sabha can resolve to create a new All-India Service.
• Where it is weaker: on Money Bills the Rajya Sabha is clearly subordinate — a Money Bill can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha, and the Rajya Sabha can merely recommend changes within 14 days, which the Lok Sabha may accept or reject. On ordinary bills the two Houses are largely co-equal, with deadlocks resolved by a joint sitting.

What it is NOT

• Not directly elected by the public. Unlike the Lok Sabha and the State Legislative Assemblies (chosen by universal adult franchise), Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council members are indirectly elected — and a slice of each upper house is nominated, not elected at all.
• Not a House that can be dissolved. The Rajya Sabha and the Legislative Council are permanent/continuing bodies; only the directly-elected lower houses (Lok Sabha, Legislative Assembly) face dissolution.
• Not present in every state. A Legislative Council is optional; a state has one only if Parliament has so provided on the Assembly's request, and it can later be abolished by the same route.
• Not a secret-ballot election for Rajya Sabha. Voting by MLAs is by an open ballot (the elector shows the marked ballot to the party's authorised agent) — a feature introduced to curb cross-voting, distinct from the secret ballot used in general elections. (General principle; the precise anti-defection mechanics are not in this release.)

For Mains