New Delhi: When Rajya Sabha deputy chairperson PJ Kurien retires in July this year, the Congress may lose the prestigious post after 41 years.
Since 1977, when Congress leader Ram Niwas Mirdha occupied the position, all deputy chairpersons have been nominees from the Congress. The trend continued even after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Bhairon Singh Shekhawat in 2002 became the first BJP politician to be elected vice-president, according to parliamentary records.The vice-president also serves as Rajya Sabha chairperson.
“The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker in Lok Sabha and the post of the Chairperson is already out of the Congress hands. There is a distinct possibility that after July, the deputy chairperson in Rajya Sabha will also see a non-Congress MP. For the first time in the history of Parliament, the top four positions in the House may not have a Congress nominee.
The nomination for Kurien’s successor, however, can be a tricky process as the ruling National Democratic Alliance doesn’t have the numbers to push its nominee for that position.