Veep Polls: KTR's PV Narasimha Rao Reminder To Congress's 'Telugu' Pitch

As NDA and the Opposition bloc gear up for the September 9 Vice-Presidential election, the K Chandrashekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has said it is yet to decide on whose candidate it will support. BRS leader and Mr Rao's son KT Rama Rao also hit out at the Congress for trying to play up the Telugu pride card to seek votes after "humiliating" its veteran leader and former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao.

Following the surprise exit of former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, NDA nominee, veteran BJP leader CP Radhakrishnan, and the Opposition's pick, former Supreme Court judge Justice (retired) B Sudershan Reddy, are contesting for the second-highest constitutional post in the country.

The Opposition allies are hoping that B Sudershan Reddy, who is from Andhra Pradesh, will draw the votes of Andhra and Telangana MPs. But the TDP and YSRCP have already made it clear that they have decided to back the NDA candidate.

BRS has four Rajya Sabha MPs and is yet to announce a decision.

Hitting out at the Congress for hoping to benefit from the Telugu identity card by choosing a candidate from Andhra, BRS leader Rao referred to former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao and said it's ironic that the Grand Old party is talking about Telugu pride now.

"Congress is now raising 'Telugu pride' and PV Narsimha Rao, but where was this sentiment when they humiliated him? They did not allow his dead body inside the Congress office in Delhi, and have not yet built a memorial for him. It's ironic that Congress, particularly Revanth Reddy, is talking about 'Telugu pride' just when they need support for the Vice Presidential election," the former state minister said.

This comes after Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy appealed to all parties in Andhra and Telangana to support the candidature of former Supreme Court Judge B Sudershan Reddy in the upcoming vice presidential elections.

Addressing a press conference here, the Chief Minister urged MPs of TDP, BRS, YSRCP, Janasena and AIMIM to vote in favour of the Opposition candidate.

"Every Telugu person has a responsibility to ensure his victory. It is the reason I am requesting the Telugu Desam party, YSR Congress party, BRS party, MIM party and all the Lok Sabha and Rajya members in both the Telugu states to elect Justice Judershan Reddy. It is our responsibility," he said.

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 and the BJP appears to have an edge.