New DelhiSeptember 12, 2025 07:59 PM IST First published on: Sep 12, 2025 at 07:59 PM ISTC P Radhakrishnan was sworn in as the country’s 15th Vice-President in a brief ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday. President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to the 67-year-old at an event attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several Union Ministers, and other dignitaries.Hours later, Radhakrishnan met the floor leaders of political parties in the Rajya Sabha — the V-P is the ex officio Chairman of the Upper House — and the Opposition’s representatives were in for a pleasant surprise.AdvertisementRadhakrishnan’s predecessor Jagdeep Dhankhar, who resigned in a surprise move on July 21, often had run-ins with the Opposition. So much so that they had given a notice to bring a motion for his removal last year. Given the past rancour, Opposition leaders were keen to urge the new V-P to ensure that the Opposition is given equal space and dignity in the House and its views are heard.In his introductory remarks recapping his life journey, Radhakrishnan mentioned that his uncle was once a Congress MP and his grandfather was a Communist. His uncle C K Kuppuswamy was a three-time MP from Coimbatore, a seat Radhakrishnan too won twice, in 1998 and 1999.Kuppuswamy, who was also the vice-president of Tamil Nadu Congress, was an MP from 1984 to 1996. For a brief period, he joined a political party floated by actor Sivaji Ganesan. And when Opposition MPs, including the Congress’s Jairam Ramesh, CPI(M)’s John Brittas, Samajwadi Party’s Ram Gopal Yadav, and DMK’s Kanimozhi N V N Somu, urged Radhakrishnan to ensure that the Opposition is heard, the Vice-President told them he was in the “Opposition for so many decades” and knew “how being in the Opposition feels”.AdvertisementThe V-P told the Opposition leaders he would ensure “fair justice” and sought their cooperation. Although the remarks gladdened the hearts of the Opposition leaders, many of them said they would prefer to wait and watch his approach in the House. Ramesh and Brittas later made it a point to smilingly remind Radhakrishnan about his uncle and grandfather. “It was a very cordial meeting. He was very humble. And, unlike his predecessor, talked less and listened more,” said an Opposition MP.most readThe meeting, which took place in Radhakrishnan’s office in Parliament, lasted over half an hour. Deputy Chairman Harivansh, BJP chief whip Laxmikant Bajpayee, NCP’s Praful Patel, AIADMK’s Thambidurai, YSRCP’s Ayodhya Rami Reddy, TMC (M)’s G K Vasan and RJD’s Prem Chand Gupta were also present at the meeting.Earlier in the day, Radhakrishnan, dressed in a red kurta, took the oath in English in the name of God. Apart from the PM and senior Union Ministers such as Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, and J P Nadda, former President Ram Nath Kovind, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Mohan Yadav, and Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu were also present. Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge was the Opposition representative at the event.After the swearing-in ceremony, Radhakrishnan paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. He also paid homage to former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Sadaiv Atal, and offered tributes to former PM Charan Singh at Kisan Ghat. He also planted a sapling in the Parliament House complex.