BJP sends Tarun Chugh to Rajya Sabha, fuels speculation over Bittu’s Punjab role

Former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar, whose name was being discussed in political circles for a possible Rajya Sabha berth, too did not feature in the BJP’s first list of candidates

Bittu entered the Rajya Sabha through a bypoll from Rajasthan in June 2024 after Congress leader K.C. Venugopal resigned from the Upper House following his election to the Lok Sabha from Alappuzha in Kerala. Bittu was elected unopposed for the remainder of the term, which ends on June 22, 2026. However, his name has not been included in the BJP’s first list of candidates for the current round of elections.

The development assumes significance as Bittu on Wednesday publicly expressed his desire to return to active politics in Punjab after spending nearly 17 years in Parliament.

Addressing party leaders at the formal charge-taking ceremony of Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon in Chandigarh on June 3, Bittu said, “It has been 17 years in Delhi. I have been a member of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha…We have been sitting in Delhi for a long time. Now we want to reach every corner of Punjab, meet the people and live among them,” he said, while adding that any decision regarding his future would be taken by the party leadership.

Political observers view Bittu’s remarks and the absence of his name from the Rajya Sabha list as signs that the BJP could be preparing him for a more active role in Punjab ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.

Bittu was elected to the Lok Sabha from Anandpur Sahib in 2009 and from Ludhiana in 2014 and 2019 on a Congress ticket. After joining the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he lost the Ludhiana contest to Congress leader Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. He was subsequently inducted into the Union Council of Ministers and sent to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.

For the BJP, Chugh’s nomination marks another milestone in the rise of a leader who has built his political career largely through organisational work rather than electoral success.

The 54-year-old leader from Amritsar holds an MBA degree and unsuccessfully contested the Amritsar Central Assembly seat in 2012 and 2017 against Congress leader Om Prakash Soni. He lost by more than 17,000 votes in 2012 and over 21,000 votes in 2017. Despite not having won an election, Chugh has emerged as one of the BJP’s most visible Punjab leaders and has served as the party’s national general secretary since 2018.

Over the years, he has handled several key organisational assignments, including responsibility for Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Telangana. He has also worked with the BJP’s Scheduled Caste Morcha and serves as convenor of the party’s Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign. Earlier, he served as the BJP’s in-charge for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, co-in-charge of the Delhi BJP and, in 2013, oversaw organisational affairs in Punjab’s Doaba region.

Known as an articulate spokesperson and aggressive campaigner, Chugh remains one of the BJP’s strongest voices on Punjab-related issues. He was recently in the spotlight after roping in rapper Honey Singh for the party’s anti-drug campaign in Punjab.

Party insiders also credit Chugh, along with Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, with playing a key role in the appointment of Kewal Singh Dhillon as Punjab BJP president. Chugh was present when Dhillon formally assumed charge in Chandigarh on June 3.

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The Rajya Sabha elections for 24 retiring members and three bypoll vacancies will be held on June 18. June 8 is the last date for filing nominations.