Legendary Indian athlete PT Usha, who was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 2022, presided over the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha on Thursday in the absence of Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar. Usha, fondly called the “Payyoli Express”, was nominated to the Upper House by the BJP in July 2022.
Usha, who was recently appointed the president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), shared a brief clip of her time as the Chair of the Rajya Sabha on Twitter. She quoted Franklin Roosevelt to express her joy of being “trusted” with the responsibility.
“Great power involves great responsibility” as said by Franklin D. Roosevelt was felt by me when I chaired the Rajya Sabha session. I hope to create milestones as I undertake this journey with the trust and faith vested in me by my people,” she wrote on Twitter.
The video showed the retired athlete settling down on the Chairman’s seat amidst a round of applause. She sat down with a bright smile on her face as the House resumed the proceedings.
The multiple Asian Games medallist missed and lost the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics 400m hurdles bronze medal only by 1/100th of a second.
In December 2022, the 58-year-old became the first woman president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). She was elected unopposed as nobody wanted to contest her.
The elections were held under the supervision of Supreme Court-appointed retired SC judge L Nageswara Rao. The elevation of Usha to the top job marked an end to the long-drawn crisis in the faction-ridden IOA, which was warned of a possible suspension by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) if elections are not held this month. The polls were originally due to be held in December 2021.
