New Delhi: As the race for the post of Vice President of India heats up, the NDA appears to have a numerical advantage over the Opposition-backed candidate, Justice B Sudershan Reddy, ahead of the election scheduled for September 9.

Justice Reddy, a former Supreme Court judge, was announced as the INDIA bloc’s consensus candidate on Tuesday, following a meeting of senior opposition leaders in the capital. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said Reddy would file his nomination on August 21, with all INDIA bloc MPs gathering in the Central Hall tomorrow to mark the occasion.

While the Opposition has framed the contest as an “ideological battle”, the numbers suggest a clear upper hand for the BJP-led NDA.

Why the NDA has the advantage

The Vice President is elected by an Electoral College comprising 788 members from both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. As per PIB, currently, six seats are vacant, bringing the effective voting strength to 782 MPs.

Each MP holds one vote, and a candidate must secure at least 392 votes to win.

As it stands:

BJP holds 423 MPs on its own (293 in Lok Sabha and 130 in Rajya Sabha),

This figure already surpasses the halfway mark needed to elect the next Vice President, provided all NDA allies vote in favour of their candidate, CP Radhakrishnan.

Unless there is cross-voting or unexpected abstentions, the NDA’s numbers give it a decisive advantage in the September 9 contest.

Why the VP post is vacant

The Vice Presidential post fell vacant after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned on July 21, citing health concerns. The Election Commission has since notified the schedule:

Last date for nominations: August 21

Withdrawal deadline: August 25

Election and counting: September 9