New Delhi: The race for India’s Vice Presidency officially kicked off on Tuesday as NDA nominee and Maharashtra Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan filed his nomination papers at Parliament House.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, flanked by senior BJP leaders Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, J.P. Nadda, Kiren Rijiju and allies from across the coalition, including Chirag Paswan (LJP-R), Rajiv Ranjan Singh (JD-U) and Praful Patel (NCP), stood in solidarity with the ruling alliance’s candidate.
The nomination was proposed by the Prime Minister and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Ahead of filing his papers, Radhakrishnan paid floral tributes at the Prerna Sthal inside the Parliament complex, bowing before the statue of Mahatma Gandhi and other national leaders.
The Vice Presidential election was necessitated after Jagdeep Dhankhar abruptly resigned on July 21, citing health reasons, leaving the high constitutional office vacant. The poll is scheduled for September 9, with results to be declared the same day.
On the opposition front, the INDIA bloc has fielded former Supreme Court judge Justice B. Sudershan Reddy as its nominee. Announcing the decision, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge described the contest as an “ideological battle” to safeguard constitutional values. Justice Reddy is expected to file his nomination on August 21.
While the INDIA bloc has sought to project the election as a symbolic fight for democratic ideals, the NDA’s numerical strength in Parliament is expected to ensure a comfortable win for Radhakrishnan.
