It's official! Rajeev Chandresekhar is BJP's RS nominee from Karnataka

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has named businessman Rajeev Chandrashekhar as their Rajya Sabha nominee from Karnataka.

Chandrasekhar will finish his second term as an MP in the Upper House next month. He was first elected in 2006

The businessman from Bengaluru is classified as an independent member of Parliament but he is a part of the (National Democratic Alliance) NDA coalition. He has been the coalition's Vice-Chairman in Kerala since September 2016.

A News18 report said Chandrasekhar will join the BJP on Monday.

The Rajya Sabha MP was given the ticket mainly for his help in getting the swing vote in Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural districts, a source from the BJP told The News Minute.

"Over the past four years, he (Rajeev Chandrashekhar) has become a people’s person and has put a positive spin to the BJP's campaign in Bengaluru's urban and rural districts," the source added.

Chandrasekhar is the founder and chairman of Jupiter Capital Pvt. Ltd, an investment company that has holdings in media companies such as Asianet News, Republic TV and Indigo 91.9. He established the company in 2005.

In 1994, Chandrasekhar founded BPL Mobile Communications. He exited the cellular business in 2005.

The Rajya Sabha MP also served as the President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) from 2007 to 2008.