Mumbai, Feb. 28 (IANS): Senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel on Tuesday quit as member of the Rajya Sabha, nearly four years ahead of the expiry of his current term.

He was elected unopposed to the upper house in the biennial elections from Maharashtra last week and will soon start a fresh six-year term in April.

When he was made the surprise NCP nominee - despite being a sitting RS member - Patel had stated that he would be quitting his current seat, to which he was elected in July 2022, after getting elected this time.

Patel had cited certain "technical issues" for the decision, pertaining to the ongoing political imbroglio vis-a-vis the NCP-Sharad Pawar and a disqualification plea filed by it after the vertical split in July 2023.

A RS notification said this evening: "Shri Praful Patel, an elected Member of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), representing the State of Maharashtra, resigned his seat in the Rajya Sabha and his resignation has been accepted by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha, wef the 27th of February, 2024."

NCP President and Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar had said that the vacancy arising out of Patel's resignation would also go to his party.