Rajya Sabha: Eight new members take oath; BJP’ strength rises to 114

Eight newly-elected Rajya Sabha MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and BJP leader Tarun Chugh, took the oath as members of the Upper House on Monday. Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office to the new members.

While Kharge took the oath separately in Radhakrishnan’s chamber, the seven other members took oath in the Rajya Sabha chamber. Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were present during Kharge’s oath-taking ceremony.

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Chugh, who was elected to the Upper House from Madhya Pradesh, took the oath in Punjabi.

Apart from Kharge and Chugh, the six other newly elected members are Jitendra Meghjibhai Kanzariya and Mansingh Meraman Parmar (Gujarat), M. Nagaraja (Karnataka), Rajendra Hiralal Jain (Maharashtra), Adhikarimayum Sharda Devi (Manipur), and Alka Singh (Rajasthan).

Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, Leader of the House J.P. Nadda, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, and Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal were present at the oath-taking ceremony.

With these additions, the BJP-led NDA has moved closer to securing a two-thirds majority in the Rajya Sabha. As on date, the BJP’s standalone strength in the 245-member House is 114, while the main opposition Congress has 30 members. With the NDA’s strength now at around 150 seats, the ruling coalition is 13 seats short of the 163-member two-thirds majority mark in the 245-member House.

In contrast, the opposition INDIA bloc has around 64 seats and it is now also weakened by internal differences, with regional parties such as the DMK and AAP distancing themselves from the alliance. The DMK has eight members in the Upper House and AAP, after seven members jumped ship to join the BJP, three members.

With its current strength, the Narendra Modi government can comfortably secure the passage of ordinary legislation in the Rajya Sabha without relying on support from regional parties such as the YSRCP or the BJD. It is also moving closer to the two-thirds majority required for the passage of Constitutional Amendment Bills.