The President has nominated athlete PT Usha, music composer Ilayaraja, philanthropist Veerandra Heggade and screenwriter director V.Vijayendra Prasad to the Rajya Sabha. All the four are from the south. PT Usha is from Kerala, Ilayaraja from Chennai, Heggade from the Dharmasthala temple in Karnataka and Vijayendra Prasad from Andhra Pradesh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated all the four nominees on Twitter. They are instances of the government recognising outstanding Indians who have made a mark in diverse fields.
The Rajya Sabha has 245 seats out of which 233 are elected and 12 are appointed by the President of India. These 12 people have to be those who have significantly contributed to the fields of social science, literature, art or social work.
