New Delhi, September 9: National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee CP Radhakrishnan has been elected as the 15th Vice President of India, defeating the INDIA bloc candidate, Justice B. Sudershan Reddy, in the election held on Tuesday.
Radhakrishnan secured 452 first-preference votes, while Justice Reddy received 300. Fifteen votes were declared invalid, according to Rajya Sabha Secretary-General PC Mody, who announced the results after counting. The election saw a turnout of 98.20 percent, 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 Shiromani Akali Dal, and one Independent MP.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Radhakrishnan, praising his lifelong service to society. In a post on X, Modi said, “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 been vacant since July 21, following Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation 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 named the NDA’s Vice Presidential nominee. He has also 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 (RSS) and Bharatiya Jana Sangh before joining the BJP, where he went on to serve as the Tamil Nadu state president. He later held several parliamentary positions, including Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee.
Between 2016 and 2020, he chaired the Coir Board under the Ministry of MSME, during which coir exports touched record highs. From 2020 to 2022, he was the BJP’s in-charge for Kerala. An avid sports enthusiast, he excelled in table tennis and actively followed cricket and volleyball.
