PM Modi Meets NDA Vice President Pick CP Radhakrishnan, Lauds His ‘Long Years of Public Service
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met with the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) candidate for Vice President, CP Radhakrishnan, in New Delhi to extend his best wishes following the nomination. In a post on X, the Prime Minister praised the veteran leader’s extensive career, stating, “Met Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji. Conveyed my best wishes on his being the NDA’s Vice Presidential nominee. His long years of public service and experience across domains will greatly enrich our nation. May he continue to serve the nation with the same dedication and resolve he has always demonstrated.”
The BJP-led NDA announced the Maharashtra Governor as its nominee on Sunday after a parliamentary board meeting attended by top party leaders. The decision, announced by BJP national president JP Nadda, came after the sudden resignation of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on July 21, who stepped down citing health reasons just two years into his term. Radhakrishnan’s nomination is being seen as a multi-pronged political strategy by the BJP, aimed at addressing regional ambitions in Tamil Nadu and potentially unsettling the opposition INDIA bloc ahead of state elections next year.
The move places Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK in a politically sensitive position, forcing it to decide between supporting a candidate from its home state or adhering to the INDIA bloc’s collective strategy. With 32 MPs in Parliament, the DMK’s stance could be significant, and any refusal to back Radhakrishnan could become a campaign issue for the BJP and its allies. In response, sources suggest the DMK has proposed that the INDIA bloc should also field a candidate from Tamil Nadu to counter the BJP’s move.
Born in Tiruppur in 1957, Radhakrishnan brings over four decades of public life to the table. His political journey began with the Bharatiya Jan Sangh in 1974. He was twice elected to the Lok Sabha from Coimbatore in 1998 and 1999 and has chaired the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Textiles.
His career includes representing India at the UN General Assembly and being part of the first parliamentary delegation to Taiwan. As BJP’s Tamil Nadu president from 2004 to 2007, he led an extensive rath yatra focusing on key national issues. He has also served as chairman of the Coir Board, overseeing record-high exports, and later as the BJP’s all-India in-charge for Kerala before his appointment as Governor of Jharkhand.
