The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has secured a majority in the Rajya Sabha, reaching the crucial 119-seat mark in the upper house of India’s Parliament. This milestone was achieved after nine BJP members and two from NDA allies were elected unopposed in the recent by-polls.
The newly elected BJP members include Mission Ranjan Dass and Rameshwar Teli from Assam, Manan Kumar Mishra from Bihar, Kiran Choudhry from Haryana, George Kurien from Madhya Pradesh, Dhairyasheel Patil from Maharashtra, Mamata Mohanta from Odisha, Ravneet Singh Bittu from Rajasthan, and Rajeev Bhattacharjee from Tripura.
Additionally, Abhishek Manu Singhvi of the Congress was elected unopposed from Telangana.
The NDA’s strength in the Rajya Sabha now stands at 112, including support from six nominated and one independent member. The opposition, led by Congress, has 85 members.
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The current strength of the Rajya Sabha is 237 due to eight vacancies, with 119 being the majority mark.
Having a majority in the Rajya Sabha will significantly ease the passage of bills for the NDA government. In the past, the government’s legislative agenda often faced challenges in the upper house due to strong opposition numbers. The support of non-aligned parties like Biju Janata Dal and YSR Congress was often critical, but with these parties losing power in their respective states, their support may no longer be reliable for the government.
