Radhakrishnan Takes Oath, Dhankhar Marks Present

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath to the 67-year-old Mr Radhakrishnan. Donned in a red kurta, he took the oath in English in the name of God. Ms Murmu congratulated Mr Radhakrishnan after he took the oath. He will hold the office for a five-year term till September 11, 2030.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former vice-presidents Jagdeep Dhankhar, M. Venkaiah Naidu and Hamid Ansari, former president Ram Nath Kovind, Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari, and several other functionaries attended the oath-taking ceremony.

Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi did not attend the swearing-in ceremony. However, the LoP in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and some other Opposition leaders attended the ceremony and shook hands with Mr Radhakrishnan. Mr Kharge was seated in the second row during the ceremony.

Mr Dhankhar, along with his wife Sudesh Dhankhar, was also present at the ceremony. It was Mr Dhankhar's first public appearance since his resignation as V-P. He was seated in the front row next to his predecessor Mr Naidu and was seen conversing with him. Mr Ansari was seated next to Mr Naidu.

Mr Kovind, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, and the chief ministers of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, Devendra Fadnavis, Mohan Yadav and Chandrababu Naidu, respectively, were also present at the event.

Veteran BJP leader and former Union minister Murli Manohar Joshi also attended the function.

After the swearing-in ceremony, Mr Radhakrishnan paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at his memorial at Rajghat. He also paid homage to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Sadaiv Atal and offered tributes to former PM Charan Singh at Kisan Ghat.

Back in the Parliament House, Mr Radhakrishnan assumed charge as the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. The vice-president is the ex-officio Chairman of the Upper House of Parliament.

Before taking charge, Mr Radhakrishnan also offered floral tributes at the Prerna Sthal at the Parliament House complex, where Rajya Sabha deputy Chairperson Harivansh welcomed him along with parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju and his deputy Arjun Ram Meghwal. The Prerna Sthal houses the statues of India's eminent leaders, freedom fighters and social reformers.

Mr Radhakrishnan also planted a sapling in the Parliament House complex and later signed some official papers soon after assuming charge as the Chairman.

Separately, the Union home ministry issued a notification announcing that Mr Radhakrishnan has entered the office of the vice-president on September 12.

Mr Radhakrishanan won the vice-presidential election on Tuesday, defeating the joint Opposition nominee B. Sudershan Reddy by a margin of 152 votes. He won the vice presidential election by bagging 452 votes, while Mr Reddy polled 300 votes.

The V-P election was necessitated due to the sudden resignation of the then incumbent, Mr Dhankhar, on July 21, citing health issues. According to the Constitution, the incumbent vice-president who enters the office to fill the vacancy arising due to death or resignation will get a full five-year term.

Mr Radhakrishan is the third leader from Tamil Nadu to occupy the coveted post. Described as a "Pachai Tamizhan" (true-blue Tamil) by well-wishers, he was serving as the governor of Maharashtra when he was named as the vice-presidential nominee of the BJP-led NDA.

Mr Radhakrishnan, a two-term MP from Coimbatore and former BJP Tamil Nadu chief, has had a decades-long career that began in the Jana Sangh before transitioning to the BJP.

The V-P has keen interests in enhancing the quality of and access to higher education. He initiated several steps in the field of tribal welfare, focusing on improving their participation in higher education. He closely monitored the progress of the "school connect" programme with the vice-chancellors of 29 state-funded universities in Maharashtra, encouraging tribal girls and boys to pursue higher education.

An avid sportsperson, Mr Radhakrishnan was a college champion in table tennis and a long-distance runner. He also enjoyed cricket and volleyball.