Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President JP Nadda will finalise the NDA's candidate for the upcoming Vice Presidential election, likely to be announced on August 12. His remarks came after a crucial meeting of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) floor leaders held at the Parliament building.

The meeting comes just days after Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned from his post due to health reasons, vacating the position on the first day of the Monsoon Session.

Senior leaders including JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Shiv Sena leader Shrikant Shinde, Milind Deora, Praful Patel, Chirag Paswan, Upendra Kushwaha, Ram Mohan, Lallan Singh, Apna Dal (S) leader Anupriya Patel, and Ramdas Athawale were among those present.

Apart from finalising the Vice Presidential nominee, the NDA meeting focused on coordination and training ahead of polling day. Since the election is conducted via secret ballot and party whips cannot be issued, the alliance is working to ensure all its MPs are well-versed with the voting process to prevent invalid votes.

The NDA is taking a cautious approach after facing setbacks in recent House votes. Detailed training sessions are being planned to ensure discipline and a united front.

On Wednesday, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde extended unconditional support to the NDA in the Vice Presidential election, further boosting the alliance's numbers.

Jagdeep Dhankhar's surprise announcement came after he chaired the first day of the Parliament Monsoon Session as Rajya Sabha chairman. His letter to President Droupadi Murmu cited prioritising healthcare and abiding by medical advice.

The unexpected turn of events, however, raised eyebrows among the Opposition, particularly Congress, which believed that maybe "far more" to the resignation "than meets the eye". Congress veteran Jairam Ramesh revealed that he spoke with the 74-year-old on the phone two hours before the resignation news emerged, and that the Vice President appeared to have no immediate concerns.

Source: India Today