Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met Maharashtra Governor and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate for the Vice Presidential election, CP Radhakrishnan, in the national capital.
In a post on X, the Prime Minister extended his wishes, praising Radhakrishnan’s decades of service to the nation.
“Met Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji. Conveyed my best wishes on his being the NDA’s Vice Presidential nominee. His long years of public service and experience across domains will greatly enrich our nation. May he continue to serve the nation with the same dedication and resolve he has always demonstrated,” PM Modi wrote.
On Sunday, BJP National President JP Nadda announced Radhakrishnan as the NDA’s Vice Presidential candidate. The decision was taken unanimously by the BJP parliamentary board after consultations with alliance partners and the Opposition to ensure a smooth election, scheduled for September 9.
Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan is currently serving as the 24th Governor of Maharashtra since July 31, 2024. He earlier served as Governor of Jharkhand (February 2023–July 2024) and also held additional charge as Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry (March–July 2024).
A senior BJP leader, Radhakrishnan has twice represented Coimbatore in the Lok Sabha and has also served as the Tamil Nadu BJP State President.
The Congress, however, criticised the NDA’s choice, calling him “another RSS man.”
The Vice President of India is elected for a five-year term. The post fell vacant after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned on July 21, the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, citing health reasons.
The Vice President is elected by an electoral college comprising MPs from both Houses of Parliament. The election is governed by Articles 64 and 68 of the Constitution and conducted under the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952.
As per Article 66(1) of the Constitution, the election is held through a system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote, with voting conducted by secret ballot.
-ANI