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Voting for the Vice President of India will be held today as the tenure of M Venkaiah Naidu comes to an end on August 10.
National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) vice-presidential candidate Jagdeep Dhankhar and Opposition nominee Margaret Alva are the two contesting candidates for election to the Office of the vice President. On July 18, Dhankhar filed his nomination papers before Returning Officer and Secretary General, Lok Sabha in the Parliament House. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, and BJP chief JP Nadda were present when Dhankar filed his nomination. The vice president of India, which is the second-highest constitutional post in the country, is elected through an electoral college consisting of members of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. Dhankhar, who is a lawyer by profession, joined politics in 1989. He became the governor of West Bengal in July 2019 and has made headlines since then over his tumultuous relations with the Mamata Banerjee government. He tendered his resignation as the Governor of West Bengal. On Wednesday, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) announced its support for the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) candidate Jagdeep Dhankhar in the upcoming vice presidential elections. Earlier, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati announced her party's support for Dhankhar. Meanwhile, Alva filed her nomination for the vice presidential election on July 19. Opposition parties on July 17 decided to field the former Rajasthan Governor as their joint candidate for the vice presidential election. The decision to field Alva was taken at a meeting of Opposition leaders of 17 parties at the residence of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar. On Friday, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) announced to support Opposition candidate Margaret Alva for the vice-presidential elections. In 2017, the NDA nominated Venkaiah Naidu as its candidate for the vice-presidential election and his term ends on August 10, 2022. (ANI)
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