Bhopal: Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Dr Thawar Chand Gehlot filed nomination forms for Rajya Sabha seats on Monday. Two other BJP leaders Ajay Pratap Singh and Kailash Soni also submitted the nomination forms. Congress party leader and former minister Rajmani Patel too submitted the nomination form.

Talking to mediapersons, union petroleum and natural gas minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Madhya Pradesh is the laboratory of public welfare programmes where they are conceived and enforced first. The programmes then are implemented in other states. “I want to contribute to this laboratory,” he said.

Union social justice and empowerment minister Thawar Chand Gehlot said that his selection as nominee for Rajya Sabha seat shows that he is giving 100 percent to his work. “I am dealing with the department, which holds responsibility of 75 percent population under which come SC, ST and OBC. Our programmes are giving good results,” he added.

Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said presence of the two party members in Rajya Sabha will help in further development of state. After submitting the nomination form, Rajmani Patel said the Congress party always supports deprived classes. “This is the reason party has given me chance for RS seat.”