

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Assembly Secretariat has written to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat seeking approval for the appointment of election officers for the forthcoming Rajya Sabha elections, official sources said. The election notification is expected to be issued later this week.
In preparation for the polls, the Assembly Secretariat has begun preliminary arrangements. A senior official said the Rajya Sabha Secretariat in New Delhi had issued guidelines to Tamil Nadu and, in line with these instructions, the names of officials from the Tamil Nadu Assembly had been forwarded to oversee the conduct of the election.
The Additional Secretary and Joint Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Assembly are expected to be designated as the Returning Officers for the election.
In Tamil Nadu, six Rajya Sabha seats will fall vacant on April 1, 2026. The outgoing members are NR Elango, P Selvarasu, Tiruchi Siva and Kanimozhi from the DMK, and M Thambidurai and GK Vasan from the AIADMK.
Ahead of the vacancies, the Election Commission of India is expected to formally initiate the election process. As per the prevailing formula, a candidate requires the support of 34 MLAs to be elected to the Rajya Sabha.