Four nominated members from the BJP in Rajya Sabha retired on Saturday, reducing the party’s strength to 86 and the NDA’s to 101 in the Upper House, which currently has 226 members due to 19 vacancies.
Despite this, the NDA can still pass key legislation during the upcoming budget session with support from seven non-aligned nominated members, two Independents, and friendly parties like AIADMK and YSRCP. However, filling the nominated vacancies promptly will be crucial to lessen the alliance’s reliance on others.
The retiring members are Rakesh Sinha, Ram Shakal, Sonal Mansingh, and Mahesh Jethmalani, who were all aligned with the BJP upon their nomination. Another nominated member, Gulam Ali, will retire in September 2028.
The President nominates 12 members to the Rajya Sabha on the government’s recommendation. Currently, seven of these members are non-aligned but typically support the ruling party in legislative matters.
The Upper House has 19 vacancies, including four each from Jammu & Kashmir and the nominated category, along with 11 from various states. Ten of these seats became vacant last month due to Lok Sabha elections, while one vacancy resulted from the resignation of Bharat Rashtra Samithi member K. Keshava Rao, who later joined Congress.
Elections for these 11 seats in the coming months could potentially grant eight to the NDA and three to the INDIA bloc, including one seat from Telangana to Congress, bringing the latter’s total to 27—two more than needed to maintain its Leader of Opposition position in Rajya Sabha.