New Delhi: Six vacancies in the nominated category in Rajya Sabha was filled on Friday evening by some very well known faces of Bharatiya Janata Party after President Pranab Mukherjee gave a nod to it.
BJP leaders Subramanian Swamy and Navjot Singh Sidhu, and journalist Swapan Dasgupta are the prime names of the list, as per PTI.
The Rajya Sabha has a total of 12 seats set aside for people with expertise in various fields, such as art, literature, culture, and science, among others.
Economist and former NAC member Narendra Jadhav, Malayalam actor Suresh Gopi and boxer Mary Kom too were nominated as new Rajya Sabha members today.
Meanwhile, speaking to news agency ANI, Mary Kom said that its a great honour for her to be in the nominated category in Rajya Sabha.
While, Suresh Gopi said, "I will be orthodox but I will definitely be unconventional."
According to media reports, BJP, which has a minority in the Rajya Sabha, is attempting to increase its hold over the Upper House of the Parliament in order to overcome the hurdles it has been facing in passing bills.
Elections were held in March 2016 for 12 non-nominated seats and another election will be held in July for 64 seats.
Other five nominated members by the UPA government include bollywood actress Rekha, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, industrialist Anu Agha, lawyer K Parasaran, and senior advocate KTS Tulsi.
The nominated members could augment the NDA's numbers in the Upper House.
Biennial elections on as many as 54 seats is likely to be held in July this year.
