Hyderabad: National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate for the Vice-Presidential election CP Radhakrishnan has secured unanimous support from all political parties, including the opposition YSR Congress Party – in Andhra Pradesh.
In Telangana, however, Radhakrishnan has got the support of only Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which has eight Lok Sabha members, while the ruling Congress and its friendly party All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), who together have 12 MPs, have pitched in their support for INDIA bloc candidate and retired Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy.
The main opposition – Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) which has no Lok Sabha members but four Rajya Sabha MPs – has not spelt out its stand on whom to extend support in the Vice-Presidential elections – Radhakrishnan or Sudershan Reddy.
“We have not yet discussed the issue till now. Our party president and former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao will take a call on the matter. It is too early to talk about it,” BRS spokesman and MLC Dasoju Sravan told HT.
Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy sought to raise the Telangana sentiment to corner the BRS. “The announcement of justice Sudarshan Reddy as the INDIA bloc’s Vice-Presidential candidate has brought pride to Telugu people, especially Telangana,” Reddy told reporters on Tuesday.
Declaring Sudershan Reddy, who is a son of Telangana, born into a farming family and above political affiliations, as Vice-Presidential nominee was a matter of pride, he said.
The chief minister appealed to Telugu people to take responsibility for ensuring justice Sudershan Reddy’s victory. “It is a proud moment that once again a Telugu has been declared a Vice-Presidential candidate of such stature. This is a time to rise above politics and stand united,” he said.
Revanth Reddy urged leaders across party lines — including Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, BRS president K Chandrashekar Rao, Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan, the Communist parties, and BJP MPs from both Telugu states — to extend their support to Sudershan Reddy.
“Justice Reddy is not a Congress candidate. He is a legal luminary proposed by the INDIA bloc, with no political affiliation, currently serving as chairman of an Independent Expert Committee,” the CM clarified.
In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP and Jana Sena Party, which are part of the NDA, endorsed the candidature of Radhakrishnan. The TDP has 16 Lok Sabha members and two Rajya Sabha members, while Jana Sena has two Lok Sabha MPs. The BJP has three Lok Sabha members and two Rajya Sabha members from Andhra.
Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan issued a statement welcoming the selection of Radhakrishnan as the NDA candidate for the Vice-Presidential elections, while a delegation of the TDP leaders led by state IT minister Nara Lokesh met Radhakrishnan in New Delhi and felicitated him.
“There is no ambiguity, only warmth, respect and resolve. The NDA stands united,” Lokesh said, after meeting Radhakrishnan along with senior TDP leaders and MPs.
He praised Radhakrishnan’s vast administrative experience as governor of several states, expressing confidence that his discipline, perseverance, and service-oriented leadership would inspire the younger generation and benefit the nation in the years ahead.
Interestingly, the YSRCP, though it is not part of the NDA, extended support to Radhakrishnan. “Our party president and former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy decided that we should support Radhakrishnan as he stands the better chances of winning. We cannot oppose a person just for the sake of opposition,” YSRCP parliamentary party leader YV Subba Reddy told HT.
He said the NDA was first to reach out to the YSRCP seeking its support to Radhakrishnan. “Union defence minister Rajnath Singh called Jagan personally and requested YSRCP support. It was a kind gesture and we have to reciprocate it,” Subba Reddy said.
Currently, YSRCP holds seven Rajya Sabha and four Lok Sabha seats. Jagan’s stance in this Vice-Presidential election may mark a decisive shift in future political alignments.
Back in 2018, too, even though the TDP was part of the NDA, YSRCP had supported the NDA’s decisions. The TDP subsequently exited the NDA alliance, and YSRCP, which came to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2019, maintained good relations with the NDA government.
Until the 2024 elections, YSRCP supported NDA bills in Parliament unconditionally. “Jagan still enjoys the indirect backing from the BJP, which has obviously kept him as an option in Andhra Pradesh. Right from the beginning, it has been going soft towards Jagan, because it doesn’t want the Congress to resurrect in Andhra Pradesh,” political analyst and writer Ramesh Kandula said.
Moreover, Jagan has been opposing the Congress since he came out of it and was jailed in the disproportionate assets case in 2012. Only a few days ago, Jagan made serious comments against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, refusing to support the latter’s fight against alleged vote theft across the country.
“Rahul Gandhi has been in touch with Chandrababu Naidu on hotline regularly. So, the Congress is unreliable party,” he said.
Since his sister YS Sharmila is heading the Congress in Andhra, taking a strong anti-YSRCP stand, he won’t support the Congress-backed candidate in Vice-President elections, Kandula said.
