Manoj Sinha, DY Chandrachud, Arif Muhammad Khan, or Nitish Kumar? Who will be next vice president?

Will Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha get a promotion and be appointed Vice President after he completes his present tenure on September 7? Will ex-CJI DY Chandrachud be offered the second- highest office of the country? Or someone else, like Bihar Governor Arif Muhammad Khan or Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, will fill the position? No one knows with certainty. However, the rumour mill is doing overtime and politicians and journalists based in New Delhi are busy speculating about it. 

Manoj Sinha

Manoj Sinha, once considered for the Chief Minister's office of Uttar Pradesh, is thought to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has been praised several times for managing the state of Jammu and Kashmir during its most turbulent times after Article 370 was abrogated. He has also earned the confidence of Home Minister Amit Shah for containing terrorism and steering the restive province away from a deep crisis and establishing normalcy. Analysts believe he may be promoted for his good job and for being close to the power centre. 

DY Chandrachud

Though Justice DY Chandrachud has been hailed by many as an upright judge, he has also been criticised by some others for certain judgments that raised many eyebrows. He has been accused of siding with the BJP and favouring the saffron party in some of the cases. The most controversial verdict was related to the Ayodhya dispute. A five-judge bench consisting of Justice Chandrachud unanimously awarded the disputed Ayodhya title to the deity, Shri Ram Virajman, and directed the Uttar Pradesh government to grant the Sunni Waqf Board an alternate site in Ayodhya for the construction of a mosque. Similarly, he hit the headlines on  December 11, 2023, when the Supreme Court upheld the Union government’s abrogation of Article 370. 

(PM Narendra Modi with Bihar CM Nitish Kumar)

Arif Muhammad Khan

Arif Mohammad Khan, once close confidante of Rajiv Gandhi and later sidelined for his opinions on the famous Shah Bano case, may be elevated. The present Bihar governor gained notoriety for launching a jihad against the communists-led Kerala government after PM Modi sent him to the southern state as its governor. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has emerged as one of the front-runners. The BJP can go to the Bihar assembly elections next year with its own man at the helm of affairs, apprehending the increasing anti-incumbency sentiments. However, the main point is that neither Nitish Kumar, nor Arif Muhammad Khan, nor DY Chandrachud belongs to the BJP or its fountain-head, the RSS. The umbrella organisation of Hindutva may put its foot down and insist on giving the plum post to one of its men lest it gets marginalized. 

Conspiracy theories and speculations are there; the final decision will be taken by the saffron brass soon.