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Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday endorsed the NDA's decision to name Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan as its Vice Presidential candidate, stating that it was only natural that the post was occupied by someone who hails from the southern part of India.

"It was natural that the vice presidential candidate comes from South India because the President is from East India and the Prime Minister is from the West and North," Union Home Minister Shah told ANI in an interview.

When asked the reasons for NDA naming Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan, a lifelong RSS swayamsevak, as the vice presidential candidate, Shah dismissed the speculations that his selection had anything to do with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) trying to curry favours in Tamil Nadu ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.

"We have contested elections in Tamil Nadu before with allies. We have also won seats. If we were to name anyone from anywhere, these kinds of questions will be raised," Shah said."Radhakrishnan has a long political life. He has been a member of Parliament twice. He has been our party's president (in Tamil Nadu). He has been the Governor of Jharkhand, Telangana, Puducherry, and Maharashtra. He has led a clean public life. He is also a very mature politician," he added.

When asked about whether Radhakrishnan's selection came due to his association with RSS, Shah said that being affiliated with the Sangh was not a drawback. "Prime Minister Modi also has a connection with the RSS. I also have a connection (with Sangh). Have people elected us because we are associated with RSS? Is it a minus point to have a connection with RSS? It is not. Atal Bihar Vajpayee and LK Advani were also connected with the RSS. Radhakrishnan also has this connection," the Home Minister said.

His remarks come as the opposition has labelled the "battle" for the Vice Presidential elections as an ideological one. On August 20, CP Radhakrishnan filed his nomination papers for the Vice Presidential elections in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, JP Nadda, Kiren Rijiju and Arjun Ram Meghwal were also present at the occasion. Radhakrishnan filed his nomination in the presence of about 20 proposers and 20 supporters.

Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, who has been the Maharashtra Governor since July 31, 2024, has also served as the Governor of Jharkhand, Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry. Radhakrishnan, who served as the two-time MP from Coimbatore, was born on October 20, 1957, in Tamil Nadu's Tirrupur.

The BJP stalwart from Tamil Nadu has achieved a bachelor's degree in Business Administration and became the state committee member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the BJP's precursor, in 1974. Before the Jan Sangh, he joined the RSS. The Vice-Presidential election is scheduled for September 9, with counting on the same day. 

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)