Preparations have started for the election of the post of Vice President in the country. Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned from this post on the first day of the monsoon session i.e. on July 21. Now all eyes are on the candidate for the post of Vice President, who will he be, what will be his background and from which state?
After the resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar, the chair of the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is lying vacant. The monsoon session of Parliament is going on. In such a situation, now the Rajya Sabha is running without a Chairman. There is no doubt that after Dhankhar’s resignation, the government must have also started searching for the next candidate for this post. So far, separate meetings of many big leaders have also been held in Delhi. However, no name has been revealed yet as to who will sit on this chair, but discussions have started in the political corridors about different states. These states include West Bengal to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu.
Dhankhar’s resignation from the post of Vice President is being considered a big setback for the government. The way Dhankhar had embarrassed the government with his statements for the last few weeks is not hidden from anyone. As the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, his confrontation with the opposition parties was also often in the headlines. Even his comments on the Supreme Court were in the news. While reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the Governor of Tamil Nadu, he even said that the courts cannot order the President. There were many other issues on which Dhankhar not only openly expressed his views but sometimes he also put the government in an uncomfortable position.
What if there is a problem regarding Bihar?
The Vice President’s chair has fallen vacant at a time when assembly elections are going to be held in Bihar. At present, there is an NDA government in Bihar and Nitish Kumar is leading it. Apart from this, there is also discussion about the states of South India. Assembly elections are going to be held in many states of the South next year. BJP is considered to be an expert in setting the equation just before the election. It is being speculated that to set its electoral equation in Bihar, BJP can play the Vice President’s card, but a problem is getting stuck in it that Harivansh Narayan Singh is already the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, who comes from Bihar and is an MP from JDU quota.
Nobody knows what will happen in Bihar elections, questions on Nitish too
There is a lot of discussion going on in the political corridors that BJP will not touch Harivansh Narayan. This is because no one knows what will happen in Bihar elections. The biggest crisis in this is about Nitish Kumar. Perhaps BJP knows very well that no one knows when Nitish Kumar will turn back. Therefore, BJP’s full effort will be to select one of its leaders or someone associated with the organization for the post of Vice President, who at least does not try to make the government uncomfortable in future. If a leader of the allied parties sits on this post, then BJP may have to face pressure in future. To a large extent, BJP was looking similar in recent times regarding Dhankhar.
Took oath as Vice President in 2022
On August 11, 2022, Jagdeep Dhankhar took oath as the 14th Vice President of India. Before being elected Vice President, Jagdeep Dhankhar was the Governor of West Bengal. He was appointed Governor in July 2019. During his tenure, he was in the news many times for his confrontation with the Mamata Banerjee government. Dhankhar, who hails from Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, was a lawyer by profession. He became an MP for the first time in 1989 and later also served as a minister in the Central Government. BJP is not only an expert in giving surprises, but also tries to capitalize on every small and big issue in the elections. In Lutyens Delhi, there is a buzz that this time BJP’s focus may be on the South. Even before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s focus has been more on the states of the South. BJP’s hold in the South is weak. The party wants to further strengthen its presence in the states of the South. This includes states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman comes from Tamil Nadu and has been handling the Finance Ministry since 2019.
Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu as well as Sangh background
Apart from Bihar, if any state is getting the most votes, it is Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. Venkaiah Naidu has also been the Vice President from Andhra Pradesh. Assembly elections are going to be held in Kerala next year. There is a possibility that BJP may appoint a leader associated with the organization in Kerala to this post. Apart from this, Andhra Pradesh is being discussed because there is a TDP government here and N Chandrababu Naidu is the Chief Minister.
TDP is currently a part of NDA and is playing an important role at the center. Similarly, there are assembly elections in Tamil Nadu next year. With the intention of strengthening its hold in Tamil Nadu, BJP can declare someone from here as a candidate for the post of Vice President, but it is also believed that whoever BJP nominates for this post, the Sangh will play an important role in it and background will also be given importance.
Woman or Dalit-OBC formula
There is a growing discussion in the political corridors that BJP can adopt the Dalit-OBC formula along with the women formula to give a befitting reply to the opposition. Just like in the 2022 presidential election, BJP surprised everyone by making Draupadi Murmu its candidate. Draupadi Murmu comes from the tribal community. In the same way, BJP can adopt the Dalit-OBC formula along with the women formula for the Vice President election.
At present, the issue of Dalit and OBC is being raised strongly by the opposition, especially the Congress and Rahul Gandhi. Therefore, it is possible that BJP may go to the Vice President election with the Dalit-OBC formula to put Rahul as well as the entire opposition on the back foot. BJP has a strong organization and the support of the Sangh, so it has no shortage of leaders who fit this formula.
Whoever the NDA wants will become the Vice President
The opposition is not making any effort for the Vice President because the NDA has the numbers. However, to register protest in parliamentary politics, the opposition will also field a candidate. This was also seen during Dhankhar. Congress had declared Margaret Alva as its candidate against Dhankhar. Margaret Alva has also been the Governor of Rajasthan. She has also been a veteran Congress leader. Similarly, this time too the opposition will declare someone as its candidate, but we will have to wait for more time to know who that will be.
As far as the Vice President election is concerned, it is done by the Electoral College. It includes all the members of Rajya Sabha (both nominated and elected) and all the elected members of Lok Sabha. However, the state assemblies also participate in the presidential election, but only the members of Parliament i.e. MPs participate in the Vice President election. Currently, there are a total of 782 MPs in the Electoral College, out of which NDA has about 425 MPs. Meaning NDA has the majority. Therefore, this government will make anyone sit on the Vice President’s chair.
Ashutosh Kumar Rai
Courtesy : Hindi News