Arvind Kejriwal says AAP will back opposition’s VP nominee Sudarshan Reddy

AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday met the INDIA bloc’s vice-presidential candidate B Sudarshan Reddy, and said his party will support the candidature of the former Supreme Court judge.

Reddy, who filed his nomination earlier in the day in the presence of top opposition leaders, later met Kejriwal at his residence. The AAP national convener described Reddy as an inspiring figure whose impartial record makes him fit for the high constitutional office.

“We had a long discussion on the country’s conditions today, the mathematics of elections and the strategy ahead. We will all try to make justice Reddy (retd) win the vice presidential election,” Kejriwal told reporters after the meeting.

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He said, “Justice Reddy’s judicial career is very inspiring because he gave many unbiased judgments in favour of the country. Such a person will be helpful for the vice-president’s post, and I request everyone to vote for him, keeping party affiliations aside.”

In a post on X later, the AAP national convener said his party will support Reddy’s candidature.

Thanking Kejriwal for his support, Reddy said the office of the vice-president must remain non-partisan.

“I am not a man of a political party; the vice-president’s office is not a political office. It is a high constitutional office, which is required to be independent, impartial and autonomous.

“These are the qualities of a judge, and that is why I accepted the request made by my friends and ably supported by leaders like Arvind Kejriwal,” he said.

Reddy added that he was contesting the vice-presidential polls as “a citizen of the country, not associated with any political party”.

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The NDA has fielded Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan for the vice-president’s post, which fell vacant after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned on July 21, the first day of the Monsoon session of Parliament.

With 781 members in the electoral college and 391 required for a majority, the ruling alliance has a clear numerical advantage.