New Delhi: CP Radhakrishnan, current Governor of Maharashtra, was on August 17 announced as the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) candidate for the Vice Presidential elections slated to take place on September 9.
BJP National President JP Nadda made the announcement during a press conference following the party’s Parliamentary Board meeting held in the national capital.
#WATCH | Delhi: Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan will be the NDA's candidate for the Vice Presidential election, says BJP national president and Union Minister JP Nadda pic.twitter.com/VzSJVjoF6p
— ANI (@ANI) August 17, 2025
Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, the Maharashtra Governor since July 31, 2024, had earlier also served as the Governor of Jharkhand, Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
Born on May 4, 1957, in Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu, Radhakrishnan pursued a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from V.O. Chidambaram College, Tuticorin. A committed grassroots worker of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he rose steadily through the ranks.
Radhakrishnan, who served as the two-time MP from Coimbatore, was born on October 20, 1957, in Tamil Nadu’s Tirrupur.
The BJP stalwart from Tamil Nadu has achieved a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and became the state committee member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the BJP’s precursor, in 1974. Before the Jan Sangh, he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
95 years of selfless dedicated service to our beloved Nation @RSSorg 🙏🙏 #RSSVijayaDashmi @blsanthosh @CTRavi_BJP . pic.twitter.com/vbnkUgC1Gf
— CP Radhakrishnan (@CPR_VP) October 25, 2020
In the year 1996, Radhakrishnan was appointed as the BJP Tamil Nadu secretary, following which he was elected as a Lok Sabha member from Coimbatore in 1998 and reelected again in 1999.
During his tenure as MP, he served as the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee and was also a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and the Consultative Committee for Finance. Radhakrishnan was also a member of the Parliamentary Special Committee investigating the Stock Exchange Scam.
From the year 2004 to 2007, Radhakrishnan served as the Tamil Nadu state president and also led a 19000 km ‘Rath Yatra’ which lasted for 93 days.
The main agenda of the Rath Yatra was to highlight his demands for the linking of all Indian rivers, eradicating terrorism, implementing a uniform civil code, removing untouchability and combating the menace of narcotic drugs.
Radhakrishnan was appointed as the Chairman of the Coir Board, Kochi, which comes under the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, from 2016 to 2020, and held the position for four years. During his tenure, coir exports from India reached an all-time high of Rs 2532 crores.
He was also the All India in Charge of the BJP for Kerala from 2020 to 2022. Besides politics, Radhakrishnan was a college champion in table tennis and had combined interests in cricket and volleyball.
Radhakrishnan has also visited many foreign countries, including the USA, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Egypt, the UAE, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Japan.
Expressing his views on the selection of CP Radhakrishnan as the NDA’s Vice Presidential candidate, PM Narendra Modi said, “In his long years in public life, Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji has distinguished himself with his dedication, humility and intellect. During the various positions he has held, he has always focused on community service and empowering the marginalised. He has done extensive work at the grassroots in Tamil Nadu. I am glad that the NDA family has decided to nominate him as the Vice Presidential candidate of our alliance.”
In his long years in public life, Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji has distinguished himself with his dedication, humility and intellect. During the various positions he has held, he has always focused on community service and empowering the marginalised. He has done extensive work at… pic.twitter.com/WrbKl4LB9S
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 17, 2025
CP Radhakrishnan’s mother Janaki Ammal expressed joy as her son is announced as NDA’s Vice-Presidential candidate. She says, “When my son was born, we prayed to God that he would be like former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and named him after him. Today, that moment has come true.”
VIDEO | Tamil Nadu: CP Radhakrishnan's mother Janaki Ammal expresses joy as her son is announced as NDA's Vice Presidential candidate.
She says, “When my son was born, we prayed to God that he would be like former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and named him after him.… pic.twitter.com/JxvotBz61s
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 17, 2025
Belonging to the Kongu Vellalar Gounder community of Tamil Nadu, Radhakrishnan becomes only the second-ever OBC leader to hold the position of President or Vice President and the first from South India to reach this constitutional office. He is also just the third leader from Tamil Nadu to occupy the Vice President’s chair.
On Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan being announced as NDA’s Vice Presidential candidate, Tamil Nadu BJP Vice President Narayanan Thirupathy says, “I am proud to say that my party BJP has officially nominated CP Radhakrishnan, who is a true nationalist, a wonderful personality, a man of simplicity, a man of integrity, and a man who has been giving his service and his life for the people of Tamil Nadu so far, as the candidate for the Vice President of India. It’s great news, it’s a great moment for everyone in Tamil Nadu. I am very, very happy, and I am sure that as the Vice President of India, CP Radhakrishnan will continue his service to our motherland, as he has always been doing.”
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