‘Named him after President Radhakrishnan’: CP Radhakrishnan’s mother as he assumes VP office

Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu: As India welcomes its 15th Vice President, Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, a personal story from his early life has drawn attention, one told by his mother, Janaki Ammal, in the wake of his historic win.

Speaking to reporters from her home in Tiruppur, Janaki Ammal shared that she named her son after Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, India’s second President, who was in office at the time her son was born.

“When my son was born, the then President Radhakrishnan was in office. He was a teacher, and I too was a teacher,” she said. “In his memory, I named my son after him. At that time, my husband looked at me and asked, ‘Are you giving this name because you want your son to become the President one day?’”

Now, more than six decades later, her son has assumed office as the Vice President of India. “After 62 years, just as my husband had said, it has come true. I feel very happy about it,” she added, visibly emotional.

Her remarks came just days ahead of CP Radhakrishnan’s swearing-in ceremony.

Radhakrishnan, 68, a senior BJP leader and former Governor of Maharashtra, was elected Vice President earlier this week, defeating joint Opposition candidate Justice (Retd) B. Sudershan Reddy by 152 votes.

With the oath, he has now officially taken charge as Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, succeeding Jagdeep Dhankhar, who resigned from the post in July.