NDA’s Harivansh Narayan Elected New Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman

by

New Delhi : 

The BJP led NDA’s candidate and JD(U) leader Harivansh Narayan Singh has been elected as the deputy chairman of the Rajya Sabha today, defeating UPA’s candidate BK Hariprasad by a margin of 20 votes.

Harivansh Narayan Singh got 125 votes against opposition’s BK Hariprasad who polled 105 in the Rajya Sabha. The majority mark of the house was 119. A total of 222 Member of Parliament’s voted today.

The NDA enjoyed the support of Shiv Sena, BJD,Shiromani Akali Dal, Telangana Rashtra Samithi and AIADMK. The Opposition candidate BK Hariprasad, meanwhile, got the support of Congress of TMC, DMK, Left parties,SP, BSP, NCP, TDP. Whereas,YSRCP and AAP boycotted the polls.

Prime Minister Modi congratulated Singh. He wrote, “I congratulate Shri Harivansh Ji on being elected the Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. An accomplished writer, journalist and active Parliamentarian, I am sure he will further enrich Parliamentary proceedings in his new role. My best wishes to him.”

The Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad also congratulated Harivansh Narayan on his victory. “In elections, some on wins and someone loses. But the Deputy Chairman is no longer a part of any single party. He belongs to the country now.” he said.

Harivansh Narayan thanked all those present. He said, “I have learned a lot working with you all, and am certain that it will help me deal with matters better. I am also nervous because I will be working with Parliamentarians who come with a lot of experience and knowledge.”

The Rajya Sabha deputy chairman post was vacant after the retirement Congress’ PJ Kurien on 1 July.

Who is Harivansh Narayan ?

Harivansh Narayan Singh, born on 30 June,1956, hails from the Sitab Diara, a village that span across two states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

He was a follower of socialist leader Jai Prakash Narayan. He completed his education from the Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi. He is a former journalist and worked for Prabhat Khabar in Ranchi. He was also the media advisor to former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar.

Harivansh Narayan Singh was elected to the Rajya Sabha in April 2014 and today with his elevation as Rajya Sabha deputy chairman would strengthen ties between BJP and JDU in Bihar.