Vice-President polls: BJP-led NDA picks Maharashtra governor CP Radhakrishnan

BJP-led NDA's nominee for Vice-President is Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan, BJP chief JP Nadda announced on Sunday.

Nadda said the NDA wants the vice president to be elected unanimously and that they have reached out to the Opposition. He added that Radhakrishnan considered a statesman, commands respect in all sections of society in Tamil Nadu.

"We will talk to the Opposition as well. We should also get their support so that together we can ensure an unopposed election for the post of Vice President. As we said earlier, we have been in touch with them and our senior leaders have contacted them earlier as well and even now, we will remain in touch with them and all our NDA colleagues have supported us. CP Radhakrishnan is our NDA's candidate for Vice President," Nadda said in a press conference following the party's parliamentary board meeting.



Radhakrishnan thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Nadda for the nomination. " I am moved and touched beyond words for the confidence they have in me and giving me the opportunity to serve the Nation. I assure to work hard for the Nation until my last breath. Jai Hind!" he said.

Modi said Radhakrishnan has always focused on community service and empowering the marginalised, adding that he has worked in the grassroot level of Tamil Nadu.

"Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji has rich experience as MP and Governor of various states. His Parliamentary interventions were always incisive," Modi said in a post on X.

Who is CP Radhakrishnan?

Radhakrishnan was sworn in as Maharashtra Governor July 31, 2024. Before the appointment, he served as the Governor of Jharkhand for nearly one and a half years.

As the Governor of Jharkhand, Radhakrishnan was appointed by the President of India to discharge the functions of the Governor of Telangana and as the Lt. Governor of Puducherry.

Radhakrishnan has more than four decades of experience in polity and public life of Tamil Nadu.

He was born on October 20, 1957, in Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Starting as an RSS Swayamsevak, he became a State Executive Committee Member of the Bharatiya Janasangh in 1974.

Radhakrishnan was appointed as the Secretary of the BJP in Tamil Nadu in 1996. He was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time from Coimbatore in 1998. He was re-elected to Lok Sabha in 1999.

During his tenure as an MP, he served as Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Textiles. He was also a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and the Consultative Committee for Finance. Further, he was also a member of the Parliamentary Special Committee investigating the Stock Exchange Scam.

Radhakrishnan also addressed the UN General Assembly in In 2004 as part of the Parliamentary Delegation. He was also a member of the first Parliamentary delegation to Taiwan.

Between 2004 and 2007, he served as the State President of the BJP in Tamil Nadu. In this role, he undertook a 19,000 km ‘Ratha Yatra’ that lasted for 93 days to highlight his demands for the linking of all Indian rivers, eradicating terrorism, implementing a uniform civil code, removing untouchability and combating the menace of narcotic drugs. He also led two more Padayatra.

In 2016, Radhakrishnan was appointed as the Chairman of the Coir Board, Kochi, and was in the position for four years.

On February 18, 2023, he Radhakrishnan was appointed as the Governor of Jharkhand, before assuming the charge as the Governor of Maharashtra.