VP Radhakrishnan to hold first formal meeting with party leaders on October 7

V ice President C P Radhakrishnan will meet leaders of various political parties at the Parliament complex on October 7, marking his first formal interaction since taking charge as Rajya Sabha Chairman.

The meeting, scheduled for 4 PM at the Annexe extension building, comes less than a month after Radhakrishnan won the vice presidential election on September 9. Leaders invited include BJP president J P Nadda, Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, and his ministers of state, Arjun Ram Meghwal and L Murugan.

Other invited leaders represent a wide spectrum of parties, including TMC, DMK, AAP, RJD, BJD, AIADMK, CPI-M, NCP, CPI, and JDS. Prominent participants include Sharad Pawar, H D Devegowda, M Thambidurai, Derek O’Brien, Tiruchi Siva, Sanjay Singh, Subhash Chandra Bose Pilli, Sasmit Patra, Prem Chand Gupta, Sanjay Raut, Ram Gopal Yadav, John Brittas, and others.

TMC MP Derek O’Brien will be absent, as he will be unveiling a Mother Teresa statue in Kolkata to mark 75 years of the Missionaries of Charity. Sagarika Ghose will represent the TMC at the meeting.

Radhakrishnan’s predecessor, Jagdeep Dhankhar, had resigned suddenly in July, leaving strained ties with the opposition, which had also unsuccessfully moved a motion to remove him. The upcoming meeting is seen as a move to familiarise himself with party leaders and ensure smoother parliamentary functioning.