By G. Krishna Mohan Rao*
New Delhi: With the return of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the foreign visit today, the focus of Indian politics has now shifted to —who will be the new Vice Presidential Candidate from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA)?
Sources say that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would field its own candidate for the Vice President, following the recent resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar. In the coming week, the Prime Minister will hold a meeting of NDA alliance partners to seek consent for the post. Narendra Modi would personally initiate the process for a consensus choice.
On the other side, the INDIA bloc led by the Congress party has decided to field a candidate of their choice.
In the electoral college that comprises members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, the ruling NDA has a clear majority with the strength of nearly 425 out of the current total of 782 MPs, making its nominee the clear favourite to occupy the Vice President’s office.
It may be noted that the Vice President is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, a key position in shaping Parliament’s proceedings and thus guiding the government’s agenda. The Election Commission, under Article 324, has already set in motion the process of electing the Vice President and, in that direction already announced the appointment of Rajya Sabha Secretary-General Pramod Modi as the returning officer for the election. The Commission also appointed Garima Jain and Vijay Kumar, Joint Secretary and Director, as assistant returning officers.
It is assumed that the Election Commission will announce the poll schedule soon, and the polling will likely be held towards the end of August 2025. The BJP leadership is all set to pick someone with political and legislative experience. There is also a strong view within the party and its allies that the BJP leadership will prioritise organisational rootedness and ideological purity and resist the urge to experiment, which has led them to occasionally look beyond their own pool of experienced talent.
While the present view and mood is that the BJP will pick one from its ranks, perhaps from weaker sections, there are several names which are doing rounds for the prestigious post from the NDA side. BJP president and Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, JP Nadda, seems to be the strong contender for the post. He is also the Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha. He is being seen as a highly successful party president, winning not only the 2024 Lok Sabha election but also several states under his leadership.
Since 2020, Nadda has been heading the party, and he has already got two extensions. He hails from Himachal Pradesh, but was born and educated in Patna. With assembly polls set to be held in Bihar in October-November and in key states like West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, besides Assam next year, electoral considerations are expected to play a role in the choice of the candidate as well.
Sources say the present Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Harivansh Singh, is also being considered. Harivansh is a Janata Dal United MP and an Other Backward Caste face from Bihar. He has been holding the Deputy chairman post for the last nearly seven years and has built a great amount of trust and goodwill with the ruling NDA in Rajya Sabha. It is also being discussed that another OBC from Bihar, Ram Nath Thakur — presently the Minister of State for Agriculture and son of former Bihar Chief Minister, Bharat Ratna, Karpoori Thakur— is also being seen as a front-runner. Thakur belongs to the Nai (barber) community, which falls under the ati-picchada (Extremely Backward Classes -EBC) category. His pick as Vice President is seen as a strategic move ahead of the upcoming Bihar elections.
Initially, Bihar Chief Minister and JDU Supremo Nitish Kumar’s name also cropped up, but later the JDU leadership clarified that months before elections in Bihar, Nitish cannot leave the state.
Among other prominent names currently being considered are Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot, Sikkim Governor Om Prakash Mathur, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Bihar Governor Arif Mohammad Khan.
There is also a growing speculation that the Modi government may once again take a bold decision to send a strong message in line with its mantra of women’s empowerment by fielding a woman candidate. If this possibility materialises, it would make a significant representation of Nari-Shakti, with women occupying both the posts of President and Vice President.
Although no official briefing has been made by the BJP regarding the selection of a candidate, sources have indicated that the Vice Presidential candidate will be chosen from within the party, with strong links to the Rastriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Sources said that finally, the choice may fall on one of the four Governors who have been associated with RSS. Even Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s name is doing rounds.
On the other side, the INDIA bloc opposition is also all set to enter the fray for the Vice Presidential poll after a collective decision on a common candidate. The opposition feels that the numbers are not overwhelmingly stacked against them, despite the BJP-led NDA having a majority.
Irrespective of the outcome, the mood in the opposition is that they should not shy away from a contest to send a strong political message. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said after consultations, they would take a collective decision. The meeting will be held later this week to decide the candidate, though no name has surfaced so far. The effective strength of both Houses is 782, and the winning candidate will need 392 votes, considering all eligible voters exercise their franchise. All members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, including the nominated ones, vote in the election.
In Lok Sabha, while the BJP-led NDA enjoys the support of 293 members in the 542-member House, the INDIA bloc has 234 members. In the Rajya Sabha, the ruling alliance has the support of about 130 members out of the effective strength of 240 members.
Effectively, the NDA has 423 members in Parliament, and the INDIA bloc has 313 members, the remaining being non-aligned. It may be recalled that in the last Vice President election in 2022, the Trinamul Congress refused to support senior Congress leader Margaret Alwa, who was pitted against the NDA’s Jagdeep Dhankhar. Margaret Alwa’s nomination was approved after a meeting of 17 political parties. However, Trinamul Congress did not attend the meeting, and it had also abstained from voting in the election. A senior MP from the south said that during the 2022 election, Margaret Alwa was a surprise choice, and this time also there is also going to be a surprise choice.
*Senior journalist
