The elections for the deputy chairman of the Rajya Sabha election is expected some time next week. The vacancy arose because the term of K Rehman Khan has ended. The Bharatiya Janata Party will take the contest seriously; much like it did for the Presidential and vice-presidential polls and may ask the Telugu Desam Party or the Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to contest.
The Congress may field PJ Kurien, an MP from Kerala. The Communist Party of India-Marxist may boycott the elections as state politics will come into play. The Nationalist Congress Party wants Tariq Anwar for the post.
But Congress will be unwilling to leave this key position to any other party as it is the deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha who runs the House. In fact, the duty of the chairman of the Rajya Sabha ends with the question hour, which is generally up to 12 pm during a session.
For now, the government will wait for Hamid Ansari to be sworn-in for his second term as vice-president.
