NDA's Harivansh versus Oppn's Hariprasad for RS deputy chairman's post

A keen contest is on the cards tomorrow between NDA nominee Harivansh and joint opposition candidate B K Hariprasad for the post of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman, with both sides claiming majority support.

The numbers, however, appear stacked in favour of the ruling coalition which claims the support of 126 members in the Upper House, which has an effective strength of 244 MPs.

While Harivansh is a first-time MP of the JD-U, Hariprasad is a three-time parliamentarian of the Congress.

Both the ruling NDA and the opposition camp gave notices on behalf of their respective candidates and their papers have been found to be in order, according to sources in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat.

The election will be held at 11 am tomorrow, soon after the laying of papers. The post of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman has been lying vacant since the retirement of P J Kurien on July 1.

The opposition camp is claiming support of various parties, including Congress, TMC, DMK, Left parties, SP, BSP, NCP, TDP.

"We have decided to support Congress leader B K Hariprasad," TDP leader Y S Choudhary said. The TDP has six members in the Upper House.

On the other hand, the ruling NDA is intact, with the Shiv Sena and Akali Dal extending their full support to the official nominee, besides also by independent parties like the AIADMK and the TRS.

Sources said the top BJP leadership as well as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar are learnt to have talked to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for his party's support to Harivansh. The BJD has 9 MPs in the Upper House, while AIADMK and TRS have 13 and 6 MPs respectively.

"We have numbers on our side and Harivanshji will comfortably win the election tomorrow. It would have been better if the deputy chairman was elected unanimously," Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel said.

Congress senior spokesperson Anand Sharma claimed the opposition has the numbers as well as a formidable candidate in Hariprasad, even as he accused the government and the BJP of using every tactic and influence of their authority and power to swing the election.

He claimed that the NDA did not have the majority in the Rajya Sabha, else the BJP would have fielded its own candidate, and said the ruling party is going well beyond its fold to get votes.

Asked if the election was a fitness test for the opposition, Sharma said, "Do not pre-judge an election. Wait - otherwise the same thing can be extended even to the general elections. If anybody says why the opposition is contesting, is actually assaulting the very essence and spirit of democracy."