As Rajya Sabha debates Waqf Bill, here's how NDA, INDIA numbers compare

NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha is holding a debate on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, following its passage in the Lok Sabha in the early hours of Thursday.

Minority affairs minister Kiren Rijiu moved the bill for discussion on the second-last day of the Budget session of Parliament. If approved by the Rajya Sabha, the legislation will be sent to President Droupadi Murmu for her approval; it would become a law after the President's assent.

In the Lok Sabha, 288 members of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) voted in favour of the bill, while 232 opposition MPs voted against it. The majority mark in the 543-member House is 273.

How numbers compare in Rajya Sabha?

In the Rajya Sabha, where the total strength of present members is 236, the NDA has 117 members, just two short of the majority figure of 119. However, the ruling coalition's strength rises to 125, well above the majority mark, with two nominated members and six independents.

The Bharatiya Janata Party, the largest NDA constituent, alone accounts for 98 of the alliance's Rajya Sabha MPs. Other NDA members with representation in the House are Janata Dal (United) (four), Nationalist Congress Party (three), Telugu Desam Party (two) and one each from 10 other parties in the alliance.

On the other hand, the opposition INDIA bloc has 88 MPs in the Upper House: Congress (27), Trinamool Congress (13), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and Aam Aadmi Party (10 each), Rashtriya Janata Dal (five), Samajwadi Party and CPI-M (four each), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (three) and others.

As many as 23 MPs are from non-NDA and non-INDIA bloc parties.