New Delhi: After a closely-monitored electoral battle, C P Radhakrishnan, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate, has been chosen as the 15th Vice President of India by beating B Sudershan Reddy, the nominee of the INDIA bloc. Voting was done on Tuesday in the Parliament, and results were made known shortly after the counting began at 6 pm.
From 10 am to 5 pm, 769 Members of Parliament in total exercised their voting right. The election featured a direct confrontation between Radhakrishnan and Reddy. The former is a seasoned BJP leader and was the Governor of Maharashtra, while the latter is a retired Supreme Court judge and was the Lokayukta of Goa.
The contest had been heavily decorated with tactical political manoeuvres, with several key parties opting to abstain. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) did not participate in the voting process. Their reasons for abstaining were regional issues and natural disasters like the continuous floods in Punjab.
Although the INDIA bloc aimed at consolidating support for Reddy, by maintaining the numerical strength in the Parliament, the NDA was able to secure Radhakrishnan’s triumph. Observers view Radhakrishnan’s election as a continuation of the NDA’s dominance over constitutional positions, which they established after winning the presidential and vice-presidential elections.
The Vice President of India is also the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha; hence, the function is very important in the legislative process. Radhakrishnan’s knowledge of governance and his strong connection with the politics of the southern part of the country are predicted to facilitate a smooth running of parliament affairs.
Moreover, this election was an example of the changes in the relationship between the regional parties and national alliances, as the abstentions had a major impact on the outcome of the final result.