Former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna will be the Congress nominee for Rajya Sabha elections from the state, party sources said.

Krishna had resigned as Maharashtra Governor ahead of the assembly polls in Karnataka and was heading the election management committee of the party in the state.

The septuagenarian leader belongs to the dominant Vokkaliga community in the state.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi [Images] had on Sunday deliberated on the issue of Rajya Sabha nominations from Karnataka with senior party leaders.

Gandhi held consultations with Defence Minister A K Antony, AICC general secretaries Digvijay Singh and Prithviraj Chavan and political secretary to Congress president Ahmad Patel.

There are reports of talks between the Congress and H D Deve Gowda-led JD(S) for a possible tie-up for the Rajya Sabha polls.

Congress, which has 80 members in the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, is confident of bagging one Rajya Sabha seat, but if an understanding is reached with JD-S, it could have two members in the Upper House.

The names of former Chief Minister M Veerappa Moily and senior leader Margaret Alva have also been doing the rounds for Rajya Sabha nomination from the state.

The elections were necessitated as Vijay Mallya [Images], M V Rajshekharan, Janardhan Poojary and Prema Kariappa had completed their six-year tenure in the Upper House. The three members are also understood to be keen on being re-nominated.
 
Monday is the last date for filing of nomination papers for elections to the Upper House.