Arun Jaitley attends Rajya Sabha for first time after kidney transplant

New Delhi, Aug 9: Union Minister Arun Jaitley, who is recuperating after a renal transplant attended Parliament on Thursday, after a long gap.

Jaitley, the leader of the Rajya Sabha, participated in the vote for the post of Deputy Chairman of the house.

Speaking in the House following the election, Jaitley congratulated Singh and wished him well.

Jaitley, despite being out of office, has been vocal on social media. In blog posts, he has recently commented on GST, the Rafale deal and the economy, among other issues.

Jaitley, 65, stopped attending office in April for a renal transplant operation on May 14.

In his absence, Union Minister Piyush Goyal has been given additional charge of the Finance Ministry for the last three months.

Jaitley had a bariatric surgery soon after the BJP-led coalition came to power in 2014. The surgery was to treat weight gain that he suffered because of a long-standing diabetic condition, according to the Press Trust of India.

He is expected to start work in the Finance Ministry from August 16.

Ruling NDA candidate and JD(U) member Harivansh was today elected as the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, securing 125 votes as against 105 polled by opposition candidate BK Hariprasad. The post of the deputy chairman was lying vacant since the retirement of P J Kurien on July 1.