INDIA bloc may discuss its Vice Presidential candidate today
Parties of the Opposition INDIA bloc are set to hold a meeting at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's office on Monday morning. The meeting comes just before the resimption of the Monsoon Session of Parliament and the Vice Presidential elections. The INDIA bloc is likely to announce the name of its VP candidate after this meeting. The NDA has nominated CP Radhakrishnan as the Vice Presidential candidate.
New Delhi: The Opposition INDIA bloc is likely to discuss its Vice Presidential candidate on Monday. A meeting of all the constituent parties of the bloc is scheduled to take place where they are also likely to discuss Parliamentary proceedings after a clash with the government over SIR, virtually washed out the entire Monsoon Session.
Floor leaders to meet at Mallikarjun Kharge's office
Sources quoted by the Times of India said that the floor leaders of the constituent parties of INDIA bloc will meet in Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's office on Monday morning. The meeting is significant as it comes just before the Vice Presidential Elections and after an extended Independence Day break.
The Opposition may announce its Vice Presidential candidate after the meeting. The BJP has already announced the name of CP Radhakrishnan as its candidate and he expected to win the elections comfortably. The Opposition however has decided to field its own candidate to highlight the ideological contrast between the 2 sides
NDA nominates CP Radhakrishnan
The ruling National Democratic Alliance has announced CP Radhakrishnan as its candidate. He is a 2-term former Lok Sabha MP from Coimbatore. He is set to win the Vice Presidential elections, given the numbers the BJP and its allies have in Parliament.
The BJP parliamentary board has already approved his name as the candidate for Vice President. Radhakrishnan's win is guaranteed, given the fact that the NDA has 427 MPs in Parliament, of which 293 are in the Lok Sabha and 134 are in the Rajya Sabha. The Opposition meanwhile has 354 MPs in Parliament, 249 in Lok Sabha and 105 in Rajya Sabha. To win the Vice Presidential election, the majority mark is 392, and the NDA is comfortably above that mark in the number game.
Radhakrishnan belongs to the OBC Gounder (Kongu Vellalar) community, which is a dominant caste in Tamil Nadu. His nomination by the ruling alliance might have been influenced by several factors, like his RSS background, his political career, which includes him being a member of Jan Sangh and later a grassroot member of the BJP. The nomination also might have been influenced by the fact that Tamil Nadu Assembly elections are scheduled next year.
Radhakrishnan, also known as CP has served as the Governor of Jharkhand and Maharashtra. The experience in the Raj Bhavan helped him gather administrative experience, which would help him in conducting Rajya Sabha proceedings.