Vikrant Shekhawat : Aug 28, 2024, 09:11 AM
Rajya Sabha: All the candidates have been elected unopposed in the recent by-elections on 12 Rajya Sabha seats. In this election, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won 11 seats, while Congress got one seat. With this result, the hold of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Rajya Sabha has become stronger and the NDA has succeeded in reaching the majority. This is the first time that the NDA has become self-sufficient in the Rajya Sabha, which will make it very easy for the Modi government to pass important bills.How the NDA's position became strongOut of the 12 seats of the Rajya Sabha, 9 members of BJP and 2 members of its allies have been elected unopposed. Abhishek Manu Singhvi of Congress has been elected unopposed from Telangana. Other members elected unopposed are BJP's Ravneet Singh Bittu (Rajasthan), Kiran Chaudhary (Haryana), George Kurien (Madhya Pradesh), and Manan Kumar Mishra (Bihar). NDA ally Upendra Kushwaha has also won from Bihar.BJP's Dhairyasheel Patil and NCP Ajit faction's Nitin Patil in Maharashtra, BJP's Rameshwar Teli and Mission Ranjan Das from Assam, BJP's Mamta Mohanta from Odisha and Rajiv Bhattacharya from Tripura have also been elected unopposed.Election process and current statusThe Election Commission had announced Rajya Sabha by-elections this month, with voting scheduled for September 3. The last date for filing nominations was August 21 and the date for withdrawal of nominations was August 27. All members were elected unopposed before the election.The Rajya Sabha has a total of 245 members, out of which 8 seats are vacant. At present, there are 237 members in the House. 119 members are needed for majority. After BJP's 9 candidates won, the party's number has gone up to 96 and its allies' number is 16, taking the NDA's number to 112. Although the NDA did not reach the absolute majority, it has touched the majority figure with the support of 6 nominated and one independent member.Congress' positionThe party's opposition seat in Rajya Sabha has also been secured after Congress' Abhishek Manu Singhvi from Telangana was elected unopposed. Congress's number has now increased to 27, while 25 seats are required for the opposition seat. The opposition members have become 85 in total.Thus, the NDA's majority position in Rajya Sabha has given the Modi government freedom to pass important bills, and the opposition's position has also remained strong.