This refers to the editorial, “Setting House in order” (August 7). The election of M Venkaiah Naidu as the Vice President of India was a foregone conclusion on the day he was chosen as the National democratic Alliance’s (NDA) nominee. Similarly, Gopalkrishna Gandhi’s defeat was not unpredictable to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and its allies. Naidu emerged victorious with a thumping margin of 272 votes. He even got 17 more votes from unexpected quarters. This points to some chinks having developed in the tentative UPA camp. There is speculation that the Janata Dal (United) JD(U) voted for Gandhi as promised by party chief Nitish Kumar. It means that ironically, the JD(U) voted for the NDA nominee in presidential election when his party was in alliance with the UPA. Now, the party being allied with the NDA has voted for UPA nominee.
Meanwhile, it is a dead-end of political journey for Naidu. At best he can be given another term as Vice President. Or he can be elevated to the post of President if the 2019 lok Sabha election retains NDA’s victory. Coming from the family of an ordinary farmer, he had unflinching loyalty to the BJP. He is well known for his good sense of humour. He is also known for using alliterations more often. In his chequered long political career, he hardly courted any controversy. He is capable of rising above the political line.