‘Will appeal to NDA MPs for votes too’: Oppn vice-presidential candidate Reddy

B Sudarshan Reddy, vice-presidential candidate for the INDIA bloc, seeks support from Thackeray and Pawar, aiming for cross-party votes to uphold democracy.

MUMBAI: B Sudarshan Reddy, the opposition INDIA bloc’s candidate for the vice-presidential elections, on Friday met Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar to seek their support. Despite speculation about potential cross-voting from some MPs from Maharashtra, Pawar and Thackeray expressed confidence that Reddy would get the votes of all INDIA bloc MPs from the state.

B Sudarshan Reddy addressed a press conference along with state Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal and Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad (Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo)

Reddy first went to Matoshree, Thackeray’s Bandra residence, and later proceeded to Silver Oak, Sharad Pawar’s house in South Mumbai. After meeting both leaders, he addressed a press conference along with state Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal and other leaders. The former Supreme Court judge declared that he planned to appeal to all MPs, even those from the opposition NDA, to vote for him as he was a non-political candidate.

Thackeray said that after the country’s earlier vice-president Jagdeep Dhankhar “suddenly resigned and disappeared”, the INDIA bloc’s intention behind fighting the election was “to save democracy by electing a vice-president who will work according to the Constitution and be fair to all”. “We have already extended our support to Reddy,” he said. “Although we don’t have the numbers, NDA MPs who love the nation can vote for him to save democracy and prevent the country’s journey towards dictatorship.”

Pawar said that the vice-presidential election had attracted the attention of the nation, as Dhankar had quit his post so suddenly that there was widespread suspicion about what led to this. He, along with Thackeray, thanked Reddy for contesting the election and expressed confidence that he would bag all the votes of MPs belonging to the Congress, NCP (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT). “The result of the election is not important but it will be useful to maintain the dignity of the opposition in the parliamentary system,” he said.

Reddy said that he had come to Mumbai to thank Thackeray and Pawar for their support, without which he could have become the opposition’s consensus candidate. Holding forth on the importance of Matoshree, he said that many important decisions concerning Maharashtra and India had been made in the bungalow and so he had come to seek the blessings of the late Bal Thackeray. Reddy also praised Pawar, saying that he transformed Maharashtra into a vibrant state.

“This is an important election, as the country is going through tough times,” he said. “I am going to send a letter of appeal to all MPs, including those belonging to NDA parties, to vote for me as I am a non-political candidate and will work to protect the Constitution.”