New Delhi: In a strategic move ahead of the vice-presidential election, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis reportedly reached out to Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray, seeking support for the NDA’s candidate, C P Radhakrishnan, party leader Sanjay Raut said on Thursday.
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has fielded Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan as its vice-presidential candidate, while the opposition INDIA bloc has nominated former Supreme Court judge B Sudarshan Reddy, turning the contest into a South versus South face-off.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Raut, a Rajya Sabha member of Shiv Sena (UBT), said, “Rajnath (Singh) and Devendra Fadnavis called up Uddhav Thackeray and they requested for voting in favour of Radhakrishnan. They must have done it to others as well. It’s their job.” He did not disclose the exact timing of the calls.
C P Radhakrishnan, a veteran BJP leader from Tamil Nadu with a longstanding RSS background, filed his nomination papers on Wednesday, while B Sudarshan Reddy completed his nomination on Thursday.
The vice-presidential election, scheduled for September 9, will see the electoral college’s effective strength at 781, with the majority mark set at 391. Political analysts suggest that the outreach to Uddhav Thackeray could influence crucial votes in the NDA’s favour, adding a new dimension to the contest.
