Bengal governor Dhankhar set to be new vice-president, BJP hails ‘kisan putra’

THE BJP Saturday announced West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar as the NDA’s vice-presidential candidate, with party chief J P Nadda lauding him as a “kisan putra (farmer’s son)” who had established himself as “a people’s governor”.

With the NDA having a clear majority in the electoral college comprising MPs of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Dhankhar is expected to win the August 6 election to vice-president. He will succeed M Venkaiah Naidu, whose term ends on August 10.

Since assuming charge as the Governor of West Bengal in July 2019, Dhankhar has been in constant conflict with the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government over various issues. The TMC incidentally is the second largest Opposition party in the Rajya Sabha.

The Opposition is yet to declare its candidate for the post.

With Dhankhar also acting as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha by virtue of being the vice-president, both the Houses of Parliament will be presided over by leaders from Rajasthan.