The well-known former track and field Olympian PT Usha is scheduled to take an oath or affirmation of loyalty to the Constitution as a Rajya Sabha MP.
After the Upper House convenes at 11 am, legendary athlete PT Usha will take the oath.
The government nominated Ms Usha to the Upper House of Parliament with acclaimed composer Ilaiyaraaja, scriptwriter V Vijayendra Prasad, and spiritual leader Veerendra Heggade. This was considered a part of the governing Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) push to southern India.
According to the Rajya Sabha List of Business, “Pilavullakandy Thekkeyaparambil Usha (Nominated) to take the required oath or affirmation of loyalty to the Constitution.”
The national government has nominated Ms Usha for the Rajya Sabha. She recently met J P Nadda, the head of the BJP, who wished her well and congratulated her on her nomination as an Upper House MP.
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Ms Usha, one of India’s most well-known athletes, was raised in a tiny town in the Keralan region of Kozhikode.
Often referred to as the Payyoli Express, she has competed internationally for her nation and brought home gold in competitions like the Asian Games, Asian Championships, and the World Junior Invitational Meet. She has broken and established several national and Asian records throughout her career.
Ms Usha has inspired many young girls around the nation who have wanted to pursue careers in athletics, particularly track and field competitions.
In the women’s 400-meter hurdles, where she finished fourth and lost the bronze medal by 1/100 of a second, she missed capturing India’s first track and field medal at the 1984 Olympics.
The former cricketer-turned-politician Harbhajan Singh, Misa Bharti, the daughter of the former chief minister of Bihar, Lalu Prasad Yadav, and BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla all took the oath to serve in the Rajya Sabha earlier on Monday.
A Rao Meena, Vijay Sai Reddy, Kheeru Mahto, Maharashtra Majhi, Aditya Prasad, Praful Patel, Imran Pratapgarhi, Sanjay Raut, Sasmit Patra, Sandeep Kumar Pathak, and Vikramjeet Singh Sahani were additional participants.
Others who took the oath on Monday were Randeep Singh Surjewal, P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal, R Girl Rajan, S Kalyan Sundaram, KRN Rajesh Kumar, Javed Ali Khan, and V Vijendra Prasad.
The House was nonetheless postponed for the day on Tuesday as the opposition members persisted in their demonstrations. On the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, the House had seen an adjournment.
Two adjournments were also caused by opposition members’ demonstrations over price increases in the Lok Sabha.
