BJP Leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi resigns as minority affairs minister

On July 6, Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi resigned as the union minister for minority affairs. The latest development comes a day before his term as a member of the Rajya Sabha ends.

The ruling BJP had decided not to re-nominate him as a candidate in the recently held polls for the Upper House of Parliament. Speculations are surging regarding Naqvi's chances of getting nominated as BJP's vice presidential candidate. The vice presidential elections are slated for August 6.

The speculations gained momentum after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the latest Union Cabinet meeting, reportedly praised Naqvi for his role as a minister over the past eight years. According to media reports, after the Cabinet meeting, Naqvi met with BJP national president JP Nadda. Naqvi, apart from heading the minority affairs ministry, was also the Deputy Leader of Rajya Sabha since July 2021.

The BJP leader was also the sole Muslim face in the Narendra Modi-led central government. Naqvi, along with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, was counted among the two Atal Vihari Vajpayee-era ministers in the Narendra Modi-led Cabinet.

In the government headed by Vajpayee from 1998-99, Naqvi had served as the minister of state for information and broadcasting after being elected as the Lok Sabha MP from the Rampur constituency. Between 2002-08 and 2010-16, Naqvi served as a Rajya Sabha MP representing his home-state of Uttar Pradesh. In the year 2016, he was nominated to the Upper House for a third tenure from the state of Jharkhand.

M Venkaiah Naidu's term as Vice President ends on August 10. July 19 is the last date for nominations for Vice President.  According to reports, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, former Union Minister Najma Heptulla, and former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh are also in the running for candidature. The BJP has named Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader from Odisha, as its presidential candidate. BJP has enough numbers to have its candidates elected to the two posts.