Succession planning

Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla phoned almost all the six recently nominated members to the Rajya Sabha to congratulate them. Heptulla apprised them of the challenges nominated members face in the House, as they are given only a couple of minutes to speak on issues and that, too, rarely. She told them to elect a Rajya Sabha chairperson, who would be more generous in allocating time to members. The Vice-President of India is the chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. Senior ministers in the government have taken this as a signal from Heptulla that she is an aspirant to the post. However, at least one senior minister, who frequently eulogises Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is purportedly positioning himself as a possible successor to Vice-President Hamid Ansari.