NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata party on Sunday announced Maharashtra governor CP Radhakrishnan as National Democratic Alliance's candidate for the upcoming Vice-President election, scheduled for September 9.Radhakrishnan' s name was finalised in BJP's Parliamentary Board meeting at the party headquarters."We want next vice president to be elected unanimously, we have reached out to opposition leaders," Nadda said as he announced Radhakrishnan name."CP Radhakrishnan considered a statesman, commands respect in all sections of society in Tamil Nadu," he added.NDA had authorised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party BJP president JP Nadda to finalise the alliance candidate.This comes after the abrupt resignation of former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on July 21. Dhankhar quit during the ongoing Monsoon session of the Parliament, citing health reasons.However, the opposition claimed it was because of differences with the government.The NDA, with its majority in the electoral college comprising Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members, is poised for an easy victory if the election is contested. The opposition INDIA bloc may field a candidate, with discussions slated for August 18.Meanwhile, all NDA chief ministers and deputy chief ministers have been summoned to Delhi on August 21 for the nomination filing.Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan is currently serving as the 24th governor of Maharashtra, a post he assumed on July 31, 2024. He previously served as the Governor of Jharkhand from February 2023 to July 2024. He also held additional charge as the governor of Telangana and lieutenant governor of Puducherry between March and July 2024.A veteran BJP leader, Radhakrishnan, was elected to the Lok Sabha from Coimbatore twice and previously served as the Tamil Nadu BJP State President.The Election Commission had earlier announced that polling for the Vice Presidential election will take place on September 9, with counting of votes scheduled for the same day. The last date for filing nominations is August 21, while candidates can withdraw their nominations until August 25.
