New Delhi: The NDA Reached Majority sign i Rajya Sabha For the first time since coming to power in 2014, the BJP won nine seats on its own and its Allies Two by-elections on 12 seats in the latest round. All the candidates were elected unopposed.
The BJP now has 96 seats in the 237-seat House, with eight seats — four in Jammu and Kashmir and four in the nominated category — lying vacant. With the support of allies and six nominated and two independent members, the NDA has touched a majority of 119. With its superior numbers, the NDA can pass any law without seeking the support of friendly non-NDA, non-UPA parties. In its last term, the Modi government had to rely on YSRCP (11 members), BJD (8) or AIADMK (4) to get the required numbers in RS. It is crucial for the NDA to reach the majority mark on its own given the uncertainty surrounding YSRCP and BJD who have decided to side with the opposition this time.
If the nomination goes BJP's way, the NDA's RS tally could reach 123.
Since nominated members always go with the ruling party, the government has another window to extend its lead when it nominates four members to vacant seats. In that case, the NDA's tally with the support of nominated and independent MPs would go up to 123 – two more than the majority mark in the 241-member House.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi of the Congress won the lone seat from Telangana unopposed, taking the party to 27 in the upper house – two more than it needs to retain the post of Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. Before the by-election, the party had 26 members, leaving the fate of Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjan Kharge hanging by a thread.
In the by-elections, the BJP won one each from Madhya Pradesh (George Korin), Rajasthan (Ravinit Singh Butto), Odisha (Mamata Mohanta), Tripura (Rajib Bhattacharjee), Maharashtra (Dhrishel Patil), Bihar (Manan Kumar Mishra) and Haryana. Won a seat. (Kiran Chaudhary), and two from Assam (Rameshwar Teli and Mission Ranjan Das), while his allies won one seat each from Bihar (Rashtriya Lok Manch's Upendra Kushwaha) and Maharashtra (NCP's Nitin Patil).
Ten of the 12 seats fell vacant as sitting members of the BJP, Congress and RJD from seven states were elected to the Lok Sabha, while one member each from Telangana and Odisha resigned to join other parties. In Telangana, BRS member K Keshwa Rao resigned and joined the Congress, while in Odisha, BJD's Mamata Mohanta resigned and joined the BJP.
The BJP now has 96 seats in the 237-seat House, with eight seats — four in Jammu and Kashmir and four in the nominated category — lying vacant. With the support of allies and six nominated and two independent members, the NDA has touched a majority of 119. With its superior numbers, the NDA can pass any law without seeking the support of friendly non-NDA, non-UPA parties. In its last term, the Modi government had to rely on YSRCP (11 members), BJD (8) or AIADMK (4) to get the required numbers in RS. It is crucial for the NDA to reach the majority mark on its own given the uncertainty surrounding YSRCP and BJD who have decided to side with the opposition this time.
If the nomination goes BJP's way, the NDA's RS tally could reach 123.
Since nominated members always go with the ruling party, the government has another window to extend its lead when it nominates four members to vacant seats. In that case, the NDA's tally with the support of nominated and independent MPs would go up to 123 – two more than the majority mark in the 241-member House.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi of the Congress won the lone seat from Telangana unopposed, taking the party to 27 in the upper house – two more than it needs to retain the post of Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. Before the by-election, the party had 26 members, leaving the fate of Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjan Kharge hanging by a thread.
In the by-elections, the BJP won one each from Madhya Pradesh (George Korin), Rajasthan (Ravinit Singh Butto), Odisha (Mamata Mohanta), Tripura (Rajib Bhattacharjee), Maharashtra (Dhrishel Patil), Bihar (Manan Kumar Mishra) and Haryana. Won a seat. (Kiran Chaudhary), and two from Assam (Rameshwar Teli and Mission Ranjan Das), while his allies won one seat each from Bihar (Rashtriya Lok Manch's Upendra Kushwaha) and Maharashtra (NCP's Nitin Patil).
Ten of the 12 seats fell vacant as sitting members of the BJP, Congress and RJD from seven states were elected to the Lok Sabha, while one member each from Telangana and Odisha resigned to join other parties. In Telangana, BRS member K Keshwa Rao resigned and joined the Congress, while in Odisha, BJD's Mamata Mohanta resigned and joined the BJP.