Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha, also called Council of States, is the Upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body not subject to dissolution. One third of its members retire every second year, and are replaced by newly elected members. Each member is elected for a term of six years. Its members are indirectly elected by members of legislative bodies of the states. The Rajya Sabha can have a maximum of 250 members.
Rajya Sabha currently has a sanctioned strength of 245 members, of which 233 are elected from States and Union Territories and 12 are nominated by the President from the expertise of different fields of science, culture, art and history. The number of members from a state depends on its population. The minimum age for a person to become a member of Rajya Sabha is 30 years.
The Vice President of India is the ex-officio Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, who presides over its sessions. The Dy. Chairperson who is elected from amongst the members of the house, takes care of the day-to-day matters in the absence of the Chairperson.
Rajya Sabha, also called Council of States, is the Upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body not subject to dissolution. One third of its members retire every second year, and are replaced by newly elected members. Each member is elected for a term of six years. Its members are indirectly elected by members of legislative bodies of the states. The Rajya Sabha can have a maximum of 250 members.
Rajya Sabha currently has a sanctioned strength of 245 members, of which 233 are elected from States and Union Territories and 12 are nominated by the President from the expertise of different fields of science, culture, art and history. The number of members from a state depends on its population. The minimum age for a person to become a member of Rajya Sabha is 30 years.
The Vice President of India is the ex-officio Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, who presides over its sessions. The Dy. Chairperson who is elected from amongst the members of the house, takes care of the day-to-day matters in the absence of the Chairperson.
SUBJECT Variables
- The BJP-led NDA (National Democratic Alliance) has 11 members in the Rajya Sabha, constituting 45.3% of the total members in the House.
- The INC-led UPA (United Progressive Alliance) has 90 members in the Rajya Sabha, constituting 36.7% of the total members in the House.
- All other parties not part of either the NDA or UPA have 39 members in the Rajya Sabha, constituting 15.9% of the total members in the House.
- 5 seats in the Rajya Sabha are currently vacant
Key members of the Rajya Sabha:
- Chairman: Jagdeep Dhankar (Vice-President of India)
- Leader of the House: Piyush Goyal (BJP)
- Leader of the Opposition: Mallikarjun Kharge (INC)
STATES REPRESENTATION
The seats are allotted in degressive proportion to the population of each state or union territory, meaning that smaller states have a slight advantage over more populous states. As the members are elected by the state legislature, some small Union Territories, those without legislatures, cannot have representation. Hence, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Ladakh, and Lakshadweep do not send any representatives. 12 members are nominated by the President.
- Members from 7 states (Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, West Bengal, Karnataka, and Gujarat) comprise 50% of the total members in the Rajya Sabha.
MP PROFILE
- The median age of the Indian population is 28 years. In comparison, the average age of a Rajya Sabha MP is between 60-63 years.
- The wide age-gap between the average Indian and Rajya Sabha MP is often cited by sociologists as one of the possible reasons for the mismatch between the expectations of Indian youth and the various government policies and its communication.
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