The INDIA bloc on Tuesday announced former Supreme Court Judge Sudershan Reddy as the Opposition's candidate for the upcoming Vice-Presidential elections.
Congress president and leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, made the announcement at a news meet.
Besides being a former judge of the Supreme Court of India, Reddy was the first Lokayukta of Goa.
"All INDIA bloc parties has decided to have a common candidate, the decision has been taken unanimously. I am happy that all opposition parties have agreed to one name. It is a big achievement for democracy," Kharge said.
The BJP had on Sunday picked Maharashtra governor and former party stalwart from Tamil Nadu, C.P. Radhakrishnan, as the NDA’s candidate, apparently targeting Assembly polls in the key southern state next year.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh is steering the campaign in support of Radhakrishnan.
The Opposition parties had began serious consultations on Monday to zero in on a vice-presidential candidate with the broadest appeal, not just among themselves but also among non-aligned parties.
Singh had called up Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin in the hope of not only shoring up the NDA’s adequate numbers in the electoral college comprising members of both Houses of Parliament, including the nominated ones, but also driving a wedge in the Opposition camp by playing the Tamil card. By all indications, Stalin did not commit to supporting Maharashtra governor Radhakrishnan.
The INDIA bloc parties had two rounds of discussion on the prospective candidate and several names, including that of DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva, were considered.
Born in July 1946, Justice Reddy was appointed as a permanent judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court on May 2, 1995 and was later appointed as the chief justice of the Gauhati High Court on December 5, 2005.
He became a Supreme Court judge on January 12, 2007 and retired on July 8, 2011.
He was enrolled as an advocate in Hyderabad with the Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh on December 27, 1971.
The former top court judge worked as a government pleader in the high court during 1988-90 and also as additional standing counsel for Central government for six months during 1990.
He was a legal adviser and standing counsel for Osmania University.
Justice Reddy became the first Lokayukta of Goa in March 2013 but resigned within seven months citing personal reasons.
He is also in the Board of Trustees of International Arbitration and Mediation Centre, Hyderabad.