CP Radhakrishan’s swearing-in as Vice President: Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan took oath as the 15th Vice President of India on Friday at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi. President Droupadi Murmu
administered the oath of office to Radhakrishnan.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and others were present at the event. Former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar also attended the swearing-in ceremony of his successor.
NDA nominee Radhakrishnan, a veteran BJP leader from Tamil Nadu with deep roots in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), was elected as the 15th Vice President of India on Tuesday, securing 452 votes against Opposition candidate and former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy, who received 300 votes.
767 out of 781 MPs cast their votes, recording a turnout of 98.2 percent in the vice presidential polls. Of these, 752 ballots were valid and 15 were invalid, lowering the required majority of first preference votes to 377.
While the NDA had the backing of 427 MPs on paper, 11 lawmakers from the YSRCP also supported Radhakrishnan. Interestingly, the NDA candidate received 14 votes more than expected, sparking speculation of cross-voting from the Opposition camp.
Following the announcement of results, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated CP Radhakrishnan and expressed confidence that the newly elected Vice President would strengthen India’s constitutional values and contribute positively to parliamentary discourse.
At least 13 MPs abstained from voting during the election. These include seven MPs from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), four from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), one MP from the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and one Independent MP.
