‘All oppn parties will vote against NDA candidate’: DK Shivakumar as Vice Presidential poll begins

COIMBATORE: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said that the opposition parties have collectively decided to vote against NDA candidate CP Radhakrishnan as the poll race for the Vice President begins.

Shivakumar said that the INDIA bloc has requested all opposition parties for a conscious vote to avoid cross-voting in the Vice Presidential election. “As a democratic setup, the INDIA bloc will fight the election together. We have requested a conscious vote. The INDIA bloc and all opposition parties will vote against the NDA candidate (CP Radhakrishnan)”, Shivakumar told reporters here.

#WATCH | Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu | On the #VicePresidentialElection2025, Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar says, “…The INDIA bloc will fight the elections together. We have requested a conscience vote. The INDIA bloc and opposition parties will vote against the NDA candidate CP… pic.twitter.com/oBaLRd80Kf

— ANI (@ANI) September 9, 2025

When asked to comment on the Supreme Court’s directions that the Aadhaar card must be treated as the 12th document for the purpose of identity, Deputy CM Shivakumar said, “Aadhaar card is a very essential document for every citizen of the nation. The Congress and the UPA government have given it to all citizens of the nation”.

The voting for the 15th Vice Presidential election began on Tuesday morning, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi exercising his franchise along with other prominent ministers and MPs. The counting of votes will also take place in the evening today.

The election comes 50 days after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned from his post as the Vice President on July 21, citing health reasons. Both the BJP-led NDA and opposition parties held mock polls ahead of the crucial day earlier, telling the MPs to be cautious in exercising their franchise lest their vote be invalid.

It seems that NDA’s candidate CP Radhakrishnan has an edge with 427 MPs, well above the majority mark of 391, supporting him for the post. In the Lok Sabha, Radhakrishnan is expected to receive 293 votes, and 134 votes are likely to be cast in his favour in the Rajya Sabha. Joint opposition candidate Reddy is backed by 354 MPs, with 249 in the lower house and 105 in the upper house of the Parliament.

Currently, the Parliament comprises 781 members, including 542 in the Lok Sabha with one seat vacant and 239 in the Rajya Sabha with five seats vacant.

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) decided to abstain from voting in the Vice Presidential elections. Meanwhile, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) will not take part in the Vice Presidential poll. Moreover, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) announced that it will “boycott” the Vice Presidential election, given that people in Punjab are “upset and angry” over no help from the central or state government. (ANI)