The time for change is now: Vice Presidential candidate Margaret Alva to MPs

Opposition candidate Margaret Alva on Monday urged MPs to consider the Vice Presidential election as a referendum on how the Parliament is being run and the breakdown in the fundamental democratic process of building consensus on important national issues.

In letters to MPs, Alva said "the time for change is now" and the reason the election to the Vice President's post is not subject to a party whip and is by secret ballot is to give members an opportunity to vote without fear for a candidate they believe will do justice to this critical position.

"A candidate who will be impartial, fearless and run the Upper House in a manner befitting its stature. I believe I am that candidate and I am writing to ask you for your support and your vote on August 6," she said.

Sharing the letter on Twitter, she said the MPs have the power to bring about change and she has urged them to use that power.

Emphasising that the Vice President's election, in which only MPs vote, is "not just another election", she said in her letter, "it must be seen as a referendum on the manner in which Parliament is being run and the breakdown in the fundamental democratic process of building consensus on important national issues, in which you, as the representative of the people, are an important stakeholder."

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Alva, a five-term Parliamentarian and former Governor, lamented that Parliament is virtually at a standstill today with communication between members broken.

"There is distrust, anger, and the inability to debate issues of critical national importance without personal attacks and abuse. This diminishes Parliament and its members in the eyes of the people," she said.

"If elected Vice President, I commit myself to work tirelessly to uphold the Constitution and to strengthen our Parliamentary democracy. As Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha I will work to build bridges between different political parties, forge consensus on issues of national importance and help restore the glory of Parliament," she added.