New Delhi, Sep 9 : Three parties have decided to abstain from the Vice-Presidential election. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) of Odisha, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) of Punjab, and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) of Telangana have chosen to stay away and will not align with any group.
Their decision will make little difference to the current poll arithmetic, with the nominee of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), C.P. Radhakrishnan, headed for a comfortable victory. The Naveen Patnaik-led BJD on Monday decided to abstain from voting, while saying that it was following its long-held policy of maintaining an “equidistant” stance from both the BJP and the Congress party. The decision was finalised at a meeting of the party’s political affairs committee. Senior BJD leader and Rajya Sabha member Dr Sasmit Patra announced the decision, saying, “The party has decided to abstain from the vice-presidential election…The BJD remains equidistant from both the NDA and the INDI Alliance. Our focus is solely on the development and welfare of Odisha’s 4.5 crore people.” The BJD, which had failed to open its account in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, has seven Rajya Sabha MPs. The BRS announced on Monday that it would abstain from voting in the Vice-Presidential election. This was announced by the party’s working president, K.T. Rama Rao. The BRS has four Rajya Sabha members and has no representation in the Lok Sabha. Rama Rao said the decision was driven by farmers’ grievances, particularly the urea shortage in Telangana. The SAD declared on Monday evening that it would be staying away from the election. The reason behind this is said to be the flood disaster in Punjab. Akali Dal has only one MP, Harsimrat Kaur, the wife of Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal.