CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and state BJP president Nainar Nagenthran on Monday urged all the political parties in the state to extend their support to NDA’s vice-presidential candidate and ‘son of the soil’ CP Radhakrishnan.
Speaking to reporters after visiting the Arunachaleswarar temple in Tiruvannamalai, Palaniswami said, “It is a matter of pride for Tamil Nadu to have a leader from the state nominated as the vice-presidential candidate. Today, Tamil Nadu has a great opportunity. So, I appeal to all MPs from the state to support him irrespective of their party affiliations.”
Meanwhile, in a post on X, Nagenthran said the nomination of Radhakrishnan, a senior leader from the southern region, is a significant recognition for Tamil Nadu. He also recalled that when Droupadi Murmu, who hails from Odisha, was announced as the presidential candidate in 2022, then Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had risen above political differences and urged his party members to support her. “I hope the magnanimity and state pride shown by Naveen Patnaik will also be reflected in DMK and Chief Minister MK Stalin,” Nagenthran said.
Commenting on CP Radhakrishnan’s candidature, senior BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan urged the DMK not to repeat the ‘mistake’ it made when APJ Abdul Kalam was nominated for the presidency and to extend support irrespective of political ideologies.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy said the DMK should support Radhakrishnan, viewing him as both a Tamilian and a patriot associated with the RSS movement.
Calling the nomination a great honour for Tamil Nadu and for Tamils, Tamil Maanila Congress president GK Vasan also appealed to all political parties to support Radhakrishnan’s candidature.