The Rajya Sabha, also known as the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. As of 2023, it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using single transferable votes through open ballots, while the president can appoint 12 members for their contributions to art, literature, science, and social service. The total allowed capacity is 250 according to article 80 of the Indian Constitution. The current potential seating capacity of the Rajya Sabha is 245, after the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Act. The maximum seats of 250 members can be filled up at the discretion and requirements of the house of Rajya Sabha.
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the president on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Parliament House, New Delhi.
The Samajwadi Party is a socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. The Samajwadi Party is currently led by former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav.
The Parliament of India or Indian Parliament, is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The president of the Republic of India, in their role as head of the legislature, has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve the Lok Sabha, but they can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the prime minister and the Union Council of Ministers.
The vice president of India is the deputy to the head of state of the Republic of India, i.e. the president of India. The office of vice president is the second-highest constitutional office after the president and ranks second in the order of precedence and first in the line of succession to the presidency. The vice president is also the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
Ram Vilas Paswan was an Indian politician from Bihar and the Cabinet Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in the first and second Modi ministries. Paswan was also the president of the Lok Janshakti Party, nine-times Lok Sabha member and two-time Rajya Sabha MP. He started his political career as member of Samyukta Socialist Party and was elected to the Bihar Legislative Assembly in 1969. Later, Paswan joined Lok Dal upon its formation in 1974, and became its general secretary. He opposed the emergency, and was arrested during this period. He first entered the Lok Sabha in 1977, as a Janata Party member from Hajipur constituency, and was elected again in 1980, 1989, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2014.
The 14th Lok Sabha was convened after the 2004 Indian general election held in four phases during 20 April – 10 May 2004, which led to the formation of first Manmohan Singh ministry (2004–2009). Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance won 62 more seats than previous 13th Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha is the lower house in the Parliament of India. 8 sitting members from Rajya Sabha, the Upper House of Indian Parliament, were elected to 14th Lok Sabha after the 2004 Indian general election.
Sonal Mansingh is an Indian classical dancer and Guru in Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancing style. She has been nominated by the President of India to become a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. She is the recipient of Padma Bhushan in 1992 and Padma Vibhushan in 2003.
Nandi Yellaiah was an Indian politician from Indian National Congress party who served as a member of the Parliament of India from Nagarkurnool constituency of Telangana state in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament.
Sharad Yadav was an Indian politician from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party. He was elected to the Lok Sabha seven times and to the Rajya Sabha four times from JD(U). He was the first national president of Janata Dal (United), serving from its formation in 2003 until 2016. He was disqualified from the Rajya Sabha in 2017 and removed from party leadership positions for engaging in anti-party activities.
Rajeev Shankarrao Satav was an Indian politician from the Indian National Congress. At the time of his death, he was the member of the Rajya Sabha the upper house of Indian Parliament from Maharashtra.
Swami Sachchidanand Hari Sakshi Ji Maharaj, also known as Sakshi Maharaj, is an Indian political and religious leader belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party. He won the 2014 general election from Unnao, Uttar Pradesh. He also won Indian general election in 1991 from Mathura, 1996 and 1998 from Farrukhabad. He was also a member of Rajya Sabha from 2000 to 2006, before being suspended for corruption. He holds a Ph.D. degree and runs various educational institutions and ashrams across India under the banner of Sakshi Maharaj Group for which he is also serving as its present director.
Dr. Sudhanshu Trivedi is an Indian politician and former professor. A leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Member of Parliament from its Upper House, the Rajya Sabha since 2019. Trivedi is a senior National Spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
A Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha is the representative of the Indian states to one of the two houses of the Parliament of India. Rajya Sabha MPs are elected by the electoral college of the elected members of the State Assembly with a system of proportional representation by a single transferable vote. The Parliament of India is bicameral with two houses; Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. Compared to the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha has fewer members and its members have more restricted power. Unlike the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha is a permanent body and cannot be dissolved at any time. However every second year, one third of the members are retired and the vacancies are filled by fresh elections and Presidential nomination at the beginning of every third year.
Rakesh Sinha is a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha since July 2018, the upper house of the Parliament of India. He is the member of Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP)and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(RSS). Sinha authored the biography of the founder of Rashtriya Syayamsewak Sangh (RSS), Dr K. B. Hedgewar. Sinha was the founding Honorary director of India Policy Foundation (IPF), a Delhi based think tank. He is an alumnus of the Hindu College, Delhi University.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence (SCOD) is a department related standing committee (DRSC) of selected members of parliament, constituted by the Parliament of India, for the purpose of legislative oversight of the defence policies and decision making of the Ministry of Defence (MOD). It is one of the 24 DRSCs that have been mandated with the onerous task of ministry specific oversight.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance (SCOF) is a department related standing committee (DRSC) constituted by the Parliament of India comprising selected members of parliament for the purpose of legislative oversight on the policies and decision making of the following four ministries:
- Ministry of Finance (MoF)
- Ministry of Corporate Affairs
- Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
- NITI Aayog
Mahesh Jethmalani is an Indian lawyer and a politician. He is currently a nominated Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha. He was also a member of the National Executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party up to 2012.
