Is Ram Nath Thakur a front-runner for vice president post? Check out other names doing the rounds

After the surprise resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar asthe vice president, the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is weighing options to find a suitable candidate to fill the vacancy. The NDA has a comfortable edge in the electoral college which consists members of both houses of parliament.

 

Election of the new vice president is unlikely before the monsoon session ends as the law does not prescribe a deadline for holding polls.

 

However, reports suggest that the ruling front is keen on fielding a candidate from the backward or extremely backward classes as Dhankhar’s successor.

Though there are many names doing the rounds, Union minister Ram Nath Thakur is being seen as a frontrunner, reported the New Indian Express on Wednesday.

 

Thakur, the minister of state for agriculture, is the son former Bihar chief minister and Bharat Ratna awardee Karpoori Thakur. 

 

Thakur belongs to the Nai (barber) community and his candidature could help BJP send a political signal ahead of the Bihar assembly elections due later this year.

 

According to TNIE, the names of BJP president J.P. Nadda, former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje, Bihar Governor Muhammad Arif Khan, former Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh are also under discussion for the V-P post.

 

Some other reports claimed that Harivansh Singh, a JD(U) MP from Bihar, has an edge in the race given his rich experience in the Parliament affairs.

 

The combined strength of both the Houses is 786, and the winning candidate will need to win 394 votes in the election for a vice president, considering all eligible voters exercise their franchise.

 

In the Lok Sabha, the BJP-led NDA enjoys the support of 293 members, whereas it has the support of 129 members in the Rajya Sabha (assuming that the nominated members vote in support of the NDA nominee). This brings its total support to 422 members out of 786.

 

Dhankhar resigned as the vice president on Monday evening, citing medical reasons.

India