Jagdeep Dhankhar wins VP polls with highest margin since 1997; who did it before him?

Jagdeep Dhankhar, former West Bengal governor and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee, has been elected as the 14th Vice President of India on Saturday, defeating joint opposition candidate Margaret Alva.

Dhankhar swept the polls, receiving 528 votes or 72.8 percent of the 725 valid votes. His rival Margaret Alva’s tally stood at 182 votes. Dhankhar’s winning margin of 346 votes was the highest seen in the last six vice-presidential polls since 1997, The Times of India reported.

With 73 percent votes, Dhankhar outshined incumbent Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu's performance in 2017 by 2 percent.

In 1997, Congress Krishan Kant defeated Surjit Singh Barnala of the Shiromani Akali Dal to become the 10th Vice President of India on August 16. Of the total 790 electors, 760 voted and Krishan Kant received 441 out of the total 714 valid votes, securing 61.76 percent. Barnala received 273 votes, securing 38.24 percent of the total valid votes polled.

The highest victory margin was secured by ninth Vice President KR Narayanan who received 700 of the 701 votes cast against independent candidate Kaka Joginder Singh, alias 'Dharti Pakad' in 1992.

Born on May 18, 1951, in Kithana village of Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan, Dhankhar studied at a Sainik School in Chittorgarh.

He did his graduation in Physics from the University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, and he did LLB from the same university in 1978-79.  The same year he registered as an advocate.

As a lawyer, Dhankhar practiced at the Rajasthan High Court and Supreme Court for over 40 years. He was the youngest president of the Rajasthan High Court Bar Association. His expertise in litigation was in coal, steel, and mine and international commercial arbitration.

Dhankhar won the Lok Sabha elections from Jhunjhunu in 1989 on a Janta Dal Ticket. During his tenure, he also held key positions in crucial departments, including minister of state for parliamentary affairs in 1990.

He joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2003 and by 2016, he became the national convener for the party’s law and legal affairs department.

In July 2019, Dhankhar was appointed the Governor of West Bengal.

With his election as the Vice President of India, Dhankhar becomes the first-ever OBC (Jat) to hold the second highest constitutional post in the country.