INDIA bloc candidate for the post of vice-president, B Sudarshan Reddy, who visited Lucknow on Tuesday, appealed to MPs from Uttar Pradesh to back his candidature.
“I have come here to solicit the support of MPs from Uttar Pradesh. I believe the office of the honourable vice-president is not a political post but a high constitutional office. I appeal to members of all political parties to consider my candidature on its own merits,” Reddy, a former Supreme Court judge, said while addressing a press conference at the Samajwadi Party office alongside party president Akhilesh Yadav. He added that constitutional bodies needed greater attention to bring them back on track.
Praising the Samajwadi Party, Reddy said he was inspired by the thoughts of Ram Manohar Lohia and Mulayam Singh Yadav. “I am thankful to the INDIA partners for making me their candidate. Political parties outside the INDIA bloc have also extended support. I also met Kejriwal ji and Stalin ji a few days back along with other MPs,” he said.
Replying to a question regarding a judgement on Salwa Judum, the former Supreme Court judge, said: “I have already said what I had to say about it and I won’t comment on it again.”
Addressing reporters, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said, “We all know the current political conditions, and in such times we could not have had a better candidate than B Sudarshan Reddy, who has served as a judge of the Supreme Court of India. All those who are in favour of social justice, peace and harmony should listen to their conscience and vote for the INDIA candidate. This is not about winning or losing, but about principles.”
Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) president Ajay Rai, MLA Aradhana Mishra and Rajya Sabha MP Pramod Tiwari were also present at the press conference.
Earlier, Reddy visited the UPCC office in Mall Avenue and met senior Congress leaders. He first offered floral tributes to the statues Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi in the office premises after which he had a discussion with senior Congress leaders.
Later, he joined a lunch hosted at a private hotel for SP and Congress MPs along with senior leaders of both parties.
The stage is set for a direct contest between ruling NDA nominee CP Radhakrishnan and Reddy for the September 9 vice-presidential election. Necessitated by the sudden resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar recently, the election has been described by the opposition as an ideological battle, even as the numbers are stacked in favour of the ruling NDA.