Harivansh re-elected as Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman

“An outstanding umpire,” says PM Modi

Janata Dal (United) leader and NDA candidate Harivansh was re-elected as the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha on Monday. The election took place by voice vote on the first day of monsoon session convened amid restrictions due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Earlier, BJP leader J.P. Nadda moved a motion for electing Harivansh as Deputy Chairman of the upper house, while Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad moved the motion to elect RJD’s Manoj Kumar Jha to the post.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Harivansh, calling him an “outstanding umpire who belongs to all sides of the aisle”.

“Harivansh Ji has made efforts to ensure productivity and positivity are on the rise in Parliament. He is a torchbearer of democracy, hailing from Bihar, a land known for its democratic ethos. It is Bihar that has a close link with JP and Bapu’s Champaran Satyagraha,” Modi said.

Harivansh was first elected to the post on August 8, 2018. He was re-elected to the upper house after his term ended in April 2020.

A post graduate in economics, Harivansh had earlier served as the chief editor of Prabhat Khabar. 

The BJP has 87 members in the Rajya Sabha, and the NDA numbers add up to more than a hundred. The election to the deputy chairman post had become a Bihar vs Bihar contest after the opposition decided to field Jha.