Assam MP Dilip Saikia among 17 lawmakers to receive prestigious Sansad Ratna Award

BJP MP from Assam Dilip Saikia has been selected for the prestigious Sansad Ratna Award 2025, recognising outstanding parliamentary performance. Saikia joins 16 other parliamentarians and two parliamentary committees who will be honoured at the 15th edition of the awards ceremony scheduled for late July in New Delhi.

The Sansad Ratna Awards Committee announced on Sunday that the awards will recognise exceptional contributions to parliamentary democracy based on objective performance metrics, including debates initiated, questions raised, and private member bills introduced.

The awards, instituted in 2010 following a suggestion by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, are presented on behalf of civil society to acknowledge parliamentary excellence.

This year's ceremony will feature four Special Awards for "Outstanding and Consistent Contribution to Parliamentary Democracy" going to Bhartruhari Mahtab (BJP, Odisha), NK Premachandran (RSP, Kerala), Supriya Sule (NCP SP, Maharashtra), and Shrirang Appa Barne (Shiv Sena, Maharashtra). These lawmakers were top performers during both the 16th and 17th Lok Sabha terms and continue their exemplary work in the current 18th Lok Sabha.

Maharashtra leads with seven awardees, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Rajasthan with two each. Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Assam will receive one award each.

Two parliamentary standing committees will also be recognised: the Standing Committee on Finance, chaired by Bhartruhari Mahtab, and the Standing Committee on Agriculture, led by Dr Charanjit Singh Channi.

The jury committee nominating the awardees is chaired by Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, Chairman of the National Commission for Backwards Classes, who was notably the first recipient of the Sansad Ratna Award in 2010.

Since its inception, the awards have honoured 125 parliamentarians across 14 ceremonies. The initiative is managed by Prime Point Foundation and the eMagazine PreSense as a non-commercial venture aligned with Dr Kalam's vision of recognising excellence in India's parliamentary democracy.