NDA authorises PM Modi, Nadda to pick its Vice Presidential candidate

New Delhi: Floor leaders of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) met at Parliament on Thursday, and authorised PM Narendra Modi and Rajya Sabha Leader of the House JP Nadda to finalise the alliance candidate for the Vice President’s elections. The nominations for the VP elections began on Thursday.

Union Parliamentary Affairs minister Kiren Rijiju told reporters that in the meeting, chaired by Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, all senior leaders of the alliance were present, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah. “In the meeting, it was unanimously decided that the NDA has authorised the Prime Minister and Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha, JP Nadda ji, to initiate the process, including the selection of the candidate. The decision and the course taken by the Prime Minister will be accepted by all NDA parties,” he said.

In a post on X, he later wrote that the authorisation was proposed by JDU leader, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, seconded by Ram Mohan Naidu of TDP and supported by all the floor leaders of the NDA parties. The date for the filing of nomination for the election of the Vice-President will be till August 21. “The polling will be held on September 9 and counting will also be on the same day,” Rijiju told reporters.

Senior sources in the BJP said that after the Jagdeep Dhankhar debacle, the party intends to keep the post close and give it to a trusted hand. The exit of Jagdeep Dhankhar as the VP in the very first week of the Monsoon Session of Parliament was unexpected by all, and was accompanied by a fair amount of drama behind the scenes.

While it remains to be seen who will be the Opposition’s candidate for the elections, some of the probable candidates from the NDA camp include Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot, former Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat as well as RSS leader and foreign policy expert Seshadri Chari.

A senior minister, not wishing to be named, indicated that the relationship between Dhankhar and the party had soured irrevocably before they parted ways.

Sources indicated that there was a strong likelihood that the BJP had readied an impeachment notice against Dhankhar with the signatures of over 100 NDA leaders moments before he made his way to Raisina Hills to meet the President at Rashtrapati Bhawan for an unscheduled meeting to hand over his resignation.