Congress gains one more seat in Rajya Sabha; Manmohan Singh elected unopposed

With Manmohan Singh back in parliament, the party will have a strong and credible voice criticizing govt on the economic slowdown.

New Delhi| Congress is all set to get strength in Rajya Sabha with former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh making a comeback to the upper house. On Monday, the senior Congress leader was elected to the upper house unopposed. He had filed his nomination from Rajasthan.

Earlier, he was representing Assam in Rajya Sabha. However, his nearly 30-year-long tenure as a Rajya Sabha member ended last month. The Congress, having lost the assembly election to BJP, could not gather enough numbers to re-elect him.

We congratulate Former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh on being elected as a Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan. His repository of knowledge, dedication to his work & years of experience will benefit all. pic.twitter.com/V71T6gGZOi

— Congress (@INCIndia) August 19, 2019

However, after the death of BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan, Madan Lal Saini, the seat fell vacant. During his tenure as Rajya Sabha MP for 28 years, he led the upper House for 10 years from 2004 to 2014 and acted as the Leader of the Opposition for six years. Singh was last elected to the House in 2013.

Congress hopes to regain voice:

After the humiliating defeat in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Congress seemed to have lost voice in the parliament. Former PM Manmohan Singh, one of the biggest support system of the Congress, making comeback to the Rajya Sabha would mean party regaining the voice. It will also give the party a direction in parliament.

During the budget session, the Congress party seemed more like a headless chicken with no proper strategy as to how to target government. With Manmohan Singh back in parliament, the party will have a strong and credible voice criticizing govt on the economic slowdown.