By nominating four eminent personalities from the four southern States to the Rajya Sabha, the BJP is obviously trying to make certain inroads in regions where it has so far found itself to be struggling. It is true that there is sufficient BJP presence in Karnataka but keeping in view next year’s Assembly elections and in order to expand its base, the party has nominated a spiritual leader, Veerendra Heggade to the Upper House. Illaiyaraaja is an acclaimed music maestro and V. Vijayendra Prasad, the script writer of mega super hit `Bahubali’. Other than them, legendary athlete P.T.Usha has been chosen. All the new members are iconcs in their respective fields. P.T.Usha is undoubtedly the most famous woman track and field star in the country who looked upto the late Milkha Singh for inspiration even though many of the young and upcoming Athletes regard her as their role model as well. She had stood fourth in the Los Angeles Olympics and just fell short of a podium finish. Her one-time rivalry with another Malayalee sportswoman, MD Valsamma is a part of the folklore. The credit for recognizing her goes fully to the Central government which wants the nominated category seats in the Council of States to go to eminent people as was the case to begin with. Even during the Congress and later the UPA regime, there were some exceptional people who were a part of the Rajya Sabha but they often disappointed their fans by not participating in the deliberations and being absent for long duration of time. Hopefully the new entrants shall ensure that they abide by the faith this government has shown in their capabilities. In the past Prithviraj Kapoor, Nargis Dutt, Lata Mangeshkar and Rekha were amongst the nominated members from the world of celluloid. There was speculation that the present dispensation would nominate former Punjab Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh but it has not happened so far though there is every possibility of this in the future. After the death of Milkha Singh, there was this huge demand to confer the Bharat Ratna on him but the government apparently did not pay much heed to this. Earlier, Sachin Tendulkar was honoured with the country’s highest award for his unmatched contribution to Cricket even though many argued that Milkha Singh, Sunil Gavaskar and the late Dhyan Chand should have been chosen before him. However, this is a natural phenomenon which happens as people have their opinions and their favourites. Several decades ago, Prof.V.P.Dutt was nominated to the August House. It so transpired that after him, Dr Sarup Singh, the former Delhi University Vice Chancellor was elected to the Upper House. Both had been colleagues and Prof.Dutt was close to the Congress. Dr Sarup Singh known for his wit while speaking at a seminar in Prof.Dutt’s presence said that Dr Dutt always acted as a member of a political party despite being a nominated person. However, in his own case, he had been elected on the ticket of a political party but in the House, he always behaved like a nominated member. While wishing the new entrants the very best, we should also hope that they contribute to the proceedings of the Council of States.