The election for India’s next Vice President will take place on Tuesday. The polling will be held inside Parliament House, where members of both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha form the electoral college and cast their votes through a secret ballot.
Contest Between NDA’s CP Radhakrishnan and INDIA Bloc’s B Sudershan Reddy
The contest is between the NDA’s nominee, Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan, and the Opposition’s candidate, former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy. Both contenders come from southern India, Radhakrishnan from Tamil Nadu and Justice Reddy from Telangana.
While the NDA is widely seen as having the upper hand because of its majority in Parliament, the Opposition has framed the contest as an ideological fight.
Justice Reddy, 79, retired from the Supreme Court after delivering several notable verdicts, including criticism of the Centre’s handling of black money probes and striking down the Salwa Judum militia as unconstitutional.
Radhakrishnan, in contrast, is a veteran BJP leader with a background in the RSS who currently serves as the Governor of Maharashtra.
Rajya Sabha Secretary General PC Mody, acting as the Returning Officer, has announced that voting will be held in Room F-101, Vasudha, Parliament House, on Tuesday, September 9. Polling will begin at 10 a.m. and continue until 5 p.m.
Right now, there are 239 Rajya Sabha members and 542 Lok Sabha members who can vote in the Vice Presidential election, making a total of 781 voters. The majority mark is 391. The NDA has 425 MPs, so on paper, their candidate, Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan, looks set to win. The Vice President is chosen through a secret ballot under the single transferable vote system.
Why Vice Presidential Elections Became Necessary?
The Vice Presidential elections became necessary after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned from the post, citing health reasons, last month. Dhankhar had submitted his resignation on July 21 with the start of the monsoon session of Parliament.
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