Election Commission of India begins preparations for vice-presidential poll 

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India has informed that preparations have begun for the election of the vice president in the wake of Jagdeep Dhankar's unexpected resignation. The process of forming an electoral college comprising members of both houses of Parliament to elect the new vice president has begun. The commission also stated that the returning officers are being decided for the smooth conduct of the election procedures. The election schedule will be announced after the preparations are completed.

Reports said the NDA is likely to consider someone from the backward class as the next vice president. The name of Union Minister of State for Agriculture and JDU leader Ramnath Thakur, an ally of the NDA, is being heard.

There are hints that the unexpected resignation of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar is due to differences of opinion with the government. President Droupadi Murmu accepted the resignation yesterday morning. Reports said the resignation was due to incidents that took place after Monday afternoon. Dhankar himself announced his resignation through his X account at 9.25 pm.

Dhankar was active in the Rajya Sabha on the day the monsoon session began. However, it is reported that the government was displeased by the opposition's acceptance of the impeachment motion against former Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Verma. This led to the government missing out on the opportunity to take action against the judge and corruption in the judiciary. It is also reported that Rajya Sabha leader and minister J P Nadda and Dhankar had a long argument over the phone over this. Nadda and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju did not attend the Rajya Sabha Business Advisory Meeting held in the evening. There are also indications that Dhankar's relationship with the government had recently deteriorated. The resignation, citing health reasons, is a continuation of this.