Congress MP Shashi Tharoor stated on Sunday that the outcome is virtually determined and clearly favors the ruling BJP-led NDA as the contest to choose India’s next vice president heats up in the wake of Jagdeep Dhankhar’s abrupt resignation.
“All we know is that it will be somebody whom the ruling party nominates, as we already know the composition of the electorate,” Tharoor said, speaking to reporters.
At the backdrop of the utter surprise resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Vice President of India on July 21, 2025, Congress MP-Shashi Tharoor had unveiled his insightful comment on the next concurrent elections held over the vice presidentship.
Election of the Vice President
The BJP-led NDA, which has the numbers on its side, is expected to face off against the Congress-led opposition, which is expected to nominate a common candidate in the September 9 vice presidential poll.
If required, the polling will be held on September 9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in room F-101, Vasudha, on the first floor of the Parliament building. On the same day, the results will be made public.
While recognizing that by virtue of major numerical superiority in both Houses, the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will have some say in the next vice president’s destiny, he said that “Next vice president will more often than not be the NDA’s chosen nominee.” He stressed the fact that the only things that will come to be known will be that the ruling party will determine at will whom to nominate, as the composition of the electorate is already known.
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Even with that head start, Tharoor expressed hope that the government will consult the Opposition in the selection process. “We expect them to consult the Opposition also, but who knows,” he said, pointing to the fact that there is a fair amount of skepticism about real discussions across the party lines. It represents his greater concern for the inclusive democratic norms, even in an outcome that is very likely to be determined by arithmetic.
NDA’s Numerical Edge and Mechanics of Election
Under the Indian Constitution, the election of the vice president is bound to be held only by the members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, including the nominated members of the upper house. All such arrangements of electing the vice president give NDA a clear advantage structurally:
Modi’s alliance occupies about 293 seats in the Lok Sabha and above 129 in the Rajya Sabha, thus totaling about 422, and that is well above the required 391 for majority in a full house of 782 members. According to this configuration, he admits the result effectively becomes a foregone conclusion.
