Sonia Gandhi likely to be named for RS polls, Cong leaders discuss candidates
New Delhi, Feb 12: Top Congress leaders on Monday met at the residence of party chief Mallikarjun Kharge to discuss the names of party candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections.
Former party chief Sonia Gandhi and treasurer Ajay Maken are among the likely candidates, sources said.
Gandhi is the frontrunner for the seat that will fall vacant from Himachal Pradesh after BJP chief J P Nadda's tenure ends this April.
The Congress is yet to announce any candidate for the biennial elections for 56 seats from 15 states. The last date for filing nominations is February 15 and elections will be held on February 27.
Gandhi is likely to be nominated by the party for the lone seat from the hill state as she is unlikely to contest the Lok Sabha this time. Gandhi had stated in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls that it was the last time she was contesting in the general elections.
Among those present at Kharge's residence were Congress Parliamentary Party chief Sonia Gandhi, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal and party treasurer Ajay Maken. Senior party leader Mukul Wasnik was also present at the meeting.
The Congress has to name candidates for election to Rajya Sabha seats from the states of Karnataka, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Tika Ram Jully urged the high command to announce Sonia Gandhi's candidature from Rajasthan.
"We have requested the national president and the high command to nominate Sonia Gandhi to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan. If she is elected from here, all the Congress workers from the state will be very happy," the Congress leader said.
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Iran foreign minister Araghchi meets Pakistan Army chief Munir
Islamabad (PTI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday met Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir here, as Islamabad continued its efforts to facilitate engagement between the US and Iran.
The meeting, according to a short video posted by the Iranian embassy on social media, was also attended by Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei, and Iran's ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam.
Araghchi calls on Munir, the embassy said in the video caption.
It did not provide further details about the discussions.
Araghchi arrived here late Friday for engagements with the Pakistani leadership. He was received by senior officials, including Munir, foreign minister Ishaq Dar and interior minister Mohsin Naqvi.
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However, there is no clarity on whether direct talks between Washington and Tehran will take place during the visit.
"No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the US. Iran's observations would be conveyed to Pakistan," Baqaei said in a social media post on Saturday.
Araghchi, before leaving for Islamabad, said that he was embarking on a timely tour of Islamabad, Muscat, and Moscow, and the purpose of his visits is to "closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments".
"Our neighbours are our priority," he said.
As the Iranian team landed in Islamabad, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that US Special Envoy on the Middle East Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's adviser Jared Kushner would be leaving for Pakistan on Saturday "to engage in direct talks" with representatives of the Iranian delegation.
However, the US team has not yet arrived.
Meanwhile, Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dar, in a social media post, expressed hope for "meaningful engagements" between the two warring parties to promote regional peace and stability.
The first round of US-Iran talks held on April 11 and 12 failed to produce a breakthrough, prompting a flurry of diplomatic efforts by host Pakistan to cool tensions and revive hopes for another round of dialogue.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The Iran war began on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes.
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