Assam elects PM for fifth Rajya Sabha term

Legislators in Assam today elected Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Rajya Sabha for a fifth straight term. Singh has been representing the state since 1991.

Legislators in Assam on Thursday elected Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Rajya Sabha for a fifth straight term. Singh has been representing the state since 1991.

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As the Congress' first candidate, the Prime Minister got 49 votes in the 126-member house. The party's second candidate Santiuse Kujur, an Adivasi leader, got 45.

While 14 legislators belonging to the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and BJP abstained from voting, Aminul Islam, the candidate put up by the pro-Muslim All India United Democratic Front, got 18 votes.

Congratulating the Prime Minister and Kujur for the triump, chief minister Tarun Gogoi said, "We are privileged to have the Prime Minister represent our state. He has been working for the prosperity of our state and the country as a whole."

Singh's current term ends on June 14. Kujur would take the seat to be vacated on that day by AGP's Kumar Deepak Das.