Patna: Rashtriya Janata Dal’s first MP, Manoj Jha, is the joint opposition candidate for Rajya Sabha’s vice president elections scheduled next week, setting up a showdown between the RJD and its main rival in Bihar, Janata Dal (United States) by Nitish Kumar. , or JD-U, said people familiar with the matter.
The 64-year-old JD-U MP Harivansh has already been appointed by the National Democratic Alliance as their candidate for a second term as Rajya Sabha vice president. Harivansh was first elected to the position in 2018 when, as a deputy for the first time, he defeated BK Hariprasad from Congress, who fought as a joint Opposition candidate. Over the next two years, the ruling BJP is only stronger than it was, going from 73 seats in the 250-seat house to 87.
The opposition’s decision to screen RJD MP Manoj Jha for the first time is seen as an effort to win the support of new sectors and, as one Congress put it, also sends a strong message about opposition unity regardless of the election result. Jha joined the Rajya Sabha in Jha in April 2018.
The opposition had initially debated the possibility of introducing DMK MP Tiruchi Siva, but later settled on Jha, possibly with the Bihar assembly elections in mind, where Congress and RJD are two main components of the much depleted Great Alliance. Furthermore, there is hope that some regional parties that may not support Congress will lean towards the candidate of the party founded by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
This would make RS vice president a RJD vs JD-U fight and a Bihar affair. Both Harivansh and Jha are deputies of the Bihar RS.
Manoj Jha, 53, insisted the choice was not just between two parties.
“It shouldn’t be seen as RJD versus JD-U, as there are bigger issues at stake related to the health and well-being of parliamentary democracy. It is not between two individuals. It’s for a bigger cause and it should be viewed in that context, ”Jha said.
Jha is expected to submit his nomination on Friday (September 11), the last date to submit the nomination. The election will be held on September 14, the day the monsoon session of Parliament begins. Harivansh, who served as vice president until the end of his term, has already submitted his candidacy.
Manoj Jha’s name was proposed after Congress decided to try to further unity of the opposition in the election of RS vice president.
“It is a good sign that Congress is thinking about the cohesion of the opposition going beyond its own party with a long-term goal. It will send a positive message to the opposition parties that Congress is ready to walk another kilometer, ”said a senior congressional leader.
Jha, a professor at the University of Delhi, has not even completed half of his first term in the Rajya Sabha, but is seen as a sharp critic of the center and an articulate politician, both within the House and on social media.
“The policies of the Narendra Modi government have harmed people from all strata of the country and was further accentuated by the inept handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, the political parties that support the BJP also have to think and we hope they will do so during the next RS elections for the position of vice president, ”said Congress leader Premchandra Mishra.
For Jha to have a chance to get ahead, he would need the support of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Congress (TRS) and YSR, as the 116-member NDA is much closer to the majority mark.
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