Indian PM gets elected to parliament for another 6-year term

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday got elected to the Upper House of Parliament (the Rajya Sabha) from the northeastern state of Assam for the fifth time in a row. Singh secured 49 first preference votes in the 126-member state assembly to win his Rajya Sabha seat unopposed for another six- year term, along with another Congress candidate who bagged 45 votes, G.P. Das, the government's principal secretary told the media in capital Guwahati. Singh has been representing Assam in Rajya Sabha since 1991, after he became the finance minister. The Rajya Sabha meets in continual sessions and, unlike the Lower House (the Lok Sabha), it is not subject to dissolution. The 250 members of Rajya Sabha, except 12, are elected by the legislative assembly of states by means of single transferable vote through proportional representation, and they in turn vote to elect the Indian President during presidential polls. However, 12 members are nominated by the President having special knowledge in various areas like arts, sciences, etc. But they are not entitled to vote in the presidential election.