"No Ambiguity": BJP Ally Bites Bullet After INDIA's Andhra Pick For Veep

Hours after the INDIA Opposition bloc announced former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy as its candidate for the Vice Presidential election, key BJP ally TDP said there is "no ambiguity" regarding its choice. The Opposition hopes its choice of the Andhra Pradesh-born judge will put the N Chandrababu Naidu-led party in a spot, as language is an emotive issue in the southern state. Whether this tactic yields dividends for the INDIA bloc will be seen in the days to come, but the TDP has sent a message of NDA unity for now.

"No ambiguity - only warmth, respect, and resolve. The NDA stands united," Mr Naidu's son Nara Lokesh, who is TDP's general secretary and Andhra Pradesh minister, said in a post on X. Mr Lokesh recently met NDA's choice CP Radhakrishnan and congratulated him.

Hoping to turn the tables after the BJP created a dilemma for the INDIA ally DMK by naming a Tamil leader for the Vice President election, the Opposition bloc today named Justice (retired) B Sudershan Reddy as its candidate for the September 9 election. The move was aimed at seeking all-round support, including from Telugu heartland parties not aligned with the Opposition.

No ambiguity - only warmth, respect, and resolve. The NDA stands united. https://t.co/V1YBt5BDsR

— Lokesh Nara (@naralokesh) August 19, 2025

A key target was the TDP, an important ally for the BJP whose support ensured the Narendra Modi government's third term after the Lok Sabha election last year. The TDP now faced the question the DMK faced -- will it vote against the local candidate and stick to the NDA brief?

The DMK has tackled this pressure and made its stand clear. The BJP's choice of Mr Radhakrishnan, DMK has said, must be viewed politically, not through the prism of language. Now the TDP, too, has signalled that it stands with the NDA and has no doubt about its pick.

Going by the numbers, the BJP appears to have an edge in the Vice Presidential election. The Vice President is elected by an electoral college comprising members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The current electoral college, excluding the vacancies, has 782 members. This means that the winning side needs to have at least 392 votes.

The NDA has 293 seats in the Lok Sabha and 133 in the Rajya Sabha. Going by the numbers, the BJP will comfortably put CP Radhakrishnan in the Vice President post. Only if a group of NDA members rebel and vote for the Opposition pick can the tables turn. At this point, such a surprise seems unlikely.

The Opposition's move to force a contest is largely an optics game to ensure that the BJP does not get a walkover. A contest, however tilted, will provide the Opposition to showcase its unity at a time when it is pushing hard to corner the government on the issue of alleged poll irregularities.

Despite the BJP's advantage, the Opposition's choice of Mr Reddy has undoubtedly spiced up the Vice Presidential poll fight.