Lucknow, June 14 (IANS): Thirteen members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council were sworn in on Friday here.

All 13 candidates -- 10 of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and three of the Samajwadi Party -- had been declared elected unopposed to the Legislative Council in March this year.

The BJP fielded seven candidates and allotted the remaining three seats of its quota to its three allies -- Apna Dal (Sonelal), Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).

The Samajwadi Party fielded three candidates in keeping with its present strength in the UP assembly.

The BJP candidates who will now serve their second consecutive term in the Legislative Council include former ministers Mahendra Singh and Ashok Kataria; BJP state vice-presidents Vijay Bahadur Pathak and Dharmendra Singh. It will be the first term for the party’s state vice-presidents Mohit Beniwal and Santosh Singh and former Jhansi mayor Ram Tirath Singhal.

The BJP allies who were sworn in include Ashish Patel of Apna Dal (S), Yogesh Chaudhary of the RLD and Vichhelal Rajbhar of the SBSP.

The victorious Samajwadi Party candidates are senior party leader Balram Yadav, former lawmaker Shah Alam Guddu Jamali and Kiranpal Kashyap.