New Delhi: Leaders of the I.N.D.I.A bloc today announced former Supreme Court Justice B. Sudershan Reddy as their candidate for the Vice-Presidential (VP) election to be held on Sept. 9.

The announcement comes after a huddle at AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence to deliberate on fielding a common candidate.

The BJP-led NDA had named Maharashtra Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan as its nominee for the post on Sunday. Radhakrishnan is a former President of the party’s Tamil Nadu Unit and RSS veteran. Reddy will contest against Radhakrishnan for the second highest post in India.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had reached out to Opposition leaders, including Kharge, seeking support for a consensus choice.

The Sept. 9 election was necessitated after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned from the VP post last month citing health reasons. The majority mark is 394 with the combined strength of both Houses at 786.

The last date for filing nominations is Aug. 21.