CHENNAI: VCK president Thol Thirumavalavan on Sunday stated that it is the need of the hour to look beyond Tamil identity and support the INDIA bloc’s candidate, retired Supreme Court judge B Sudarshan Reddy, in order to thwart the BJP-led Union government’s attempts to hijack democracy.

“This is not about getting a post for Tamil Nadu, but the Vice-President for the entire nation. So, it makes little sense to emphasise Tamil identity in this context,” Thiruma said.

He asserted that the election was forced upon the nation by the BJP, which, he claimed, compelled former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar to resign abruptly at the start of the monsoon session of Parliament. “Now, he is under house arrest, and his condition remains unclear. If this can happen to the Vice-President of the country, one must question what fate awaits ordinary citizens under BJP rule,” Thiruma told journalists in Thanjavur.

The saffron party, he added, seeks to draw attention to TN by fielding Maharashtra Governor and former BJP Tamil Nadu unit chief CP Radhakrishnan as its Vice-Presidential candidate. He pointed out how some sections are arguing that a Tamilian should be made Vice-President, garnering support for the BJP candidate.

“The real question is whether one stands with the BJP or with the secular forces,” he said, alluding to AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami's appeal to MPs from the State, cutting across political lines, to vote for Radhakrishnan, who hailed from the BJP’s ideological parent RSS.

He raised a series of pointed questions: Why was Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar forced to resign abruptly? Why is he under house arrest? And what necessitated the deployment of army and paramilitary forces to guard his residence?

“The arrogance of power emboldens the BJP. They are prepared to threaten even those holding the highest offices, be it the President or Vice-President. That is why we must elect a candidate who can act with complete independence and courage to uphold the Constitution and defend democracy,” he further said.

He stressed that this election must not be treated as just another routine exercise, and appealed to members of both the houses of the Parliament to support the INDIA bloc’s candidate in the Vice-Presidential election, he said, and quipped that he wrote a letter to all MPs, seeking their support for the INDIA bloc candidate.