Four Rajya Sabha members — two elected from Kerala and two nominated members, including Swapan Dasgupta, took oath on Tuesday. Mr. Dasgupta returns to complete his tenure after having resigned ahead of the West Bengal elections where he contested on the BJP ticket. The other nominated member is senior lawyer Mahesh Jethmalani.
The two members from Kerala were senior journalist John Brittas, who has also worked in the capacity of media advisor to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPI(M) leader V. Sivadasan.
Administering the oath, Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu, said holding a public office was a 24/7 responsibility, which entailed a never-ending accountability towards the citizens of the country. “People have a lot of expectations from the members, and as their representatives, it is the bounden duty of the members to voice concerns as well as aspirations of the people through various parliamentary devices from the floor of this august institution,” he observed.
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He also advised the members to maintain high standards of conduct in public life befitting the decency, dignity and decorum of this ‘House of Elders’.