CP Radhakrishnan Elected as India’s 15th Vice President
National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan has been elected as the 15th Vice President of India, defeating INDIA bloc candidate Justice B Sudershan Reddy in the election held on Tuesday.
Radhakrishnan secured 452 first preference votes, while Justice Reddy received 300 votes. Fifteen votes were declared invalid. The results were announced by Rajya Sabha General Secretary PC Mody after the counting. The elections witnessed a high turnout of 98.20%, with 767 MPs casting their votes out of 781. Thirteen MPs abstained, including seven from the Biju Janata Dal, four from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, one from the Shiromani Akali Dal, and one independent MP.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Radhakrishnan on his victory. In a post on X, he wrote:
“Congratulations to Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji on winning the 2025 Vice Presidential election. His life has always been devoted to serving society and empowering the poor and marginalised. I am confident that he will be an outstanding VP, who will strengthen our Constitutional values and enhance Parliamentary discourse.”
The Vice President’s office had remained vacant since July 21, following the resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar due to health reasons.
Born on October 20, 1957, in Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, Radhakrishnan was serving as the Governor of Maharashtra since July 2024 before being nominated for Vice Presidency. He has earlier served as Governor of Jharkhand and held additional charges of Telangana and Puducherry.
A two-time MP from Coimbatore, Radhakrishnan began his political journey with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Jana Sangh before joining the BJP. He went on to serve as the BJP’s Tamil Nadu state president and held various parliamentary roles, including Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee.
Between 2016 and 2020, he chaired the Coir Board under the Ministry of MSME, leading the sector to record export growth. Later, from 2020 to 2022, he was the BJP’s in-charge for Kerala.
An alumnus with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Radhakrishnan is also a sports enthusiast with achievements in table tennis, cricket, and volleyball. He has represented India on several international delegations across Asia, Europe, and North America.
With his election, CP Radhakrishnan officially assumes office as the 15th Vice President of India, bringing decades of administrative and political experience to the second-highest constitutional office.
(Source: ANI)
