Seven people, including RSS ideologue Rakesh Sinha, classical dancer Sonal Mansingh and sculptor Raghunath Mohapatra, took oath as members of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Indian parliament, on Wednesday.
Along with them, Ram Shakal, a former lawmaker of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), took the oath or affirmation of allegiance to the Constitution when the House met on the opening day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
Sinha, Mansingh, Mohapatra and Shakal were last week nominated to the Upper House.
Mansingh, who is among the foremost Indian classical dancers and performs Bharatnatyam and Odissi, took oath in Hindi, while internationally-renowned authority on stone carving and architect, Mohapatra, took oath in Odia.
Sinha, an ideologue of the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangha, is the founder and honorary director of the Delhi-based think tank India Policy Foundation, and Shakal took oath in Hindi.
Also taking oath were three-newly elected members from the southern Kerala state — CPI(M) leader and CITU state general secretary Elamaram Kareem, CPIs Binoy Viswam and Jose K Mani of Kerala Congress (Mani).
The newly-elected members after taking oath went up to Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu who warmly welcomed them. They then greeted the senior leaders present in the House including BJP president Amit Shah.
Members thumped desks to welcome the newly-elected members.
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