VP polls: 25 legal luminaries criticise Reddy-Lalu meet; call it 'dismaying'

NEW DELHI: A group of 25 senior legal luminaries on Monday strongly criticised joint opposition vice-presidential candidate B. Sudershan Reddy for meeting Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, arguing that the engagement with a convicted politician casts doubts on his judgment and allegiances.Yadav had shared on X last week photographs of his meeting with Reddy, a former Supreme Court judge who has been nominated as the opposition’s candidate against the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) nominee, CP Radhakrishnan, in the September 9 polls.“It is dismaying to note that B Sudarshan Reddy recently had a private meeting with Lalu Prasad Yadav who stands infamously convicted in the fodder scam case which involved the embezzlement of about Rs 940 crore of public funds from the state of Bihar,” the group said in a joint statement.“For someone of Reddy’s stature, a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, and his ambition, which is to occupy one of the nation's highest constitutional offices, an engagement of such dubious nature raises serious questions about his judgment and propriety,” they added.The statement argued that Reddy’s decision to associate with convicted individuals who have “demonstrably harmed national interests through corruption, speaks volumes about his intentions and allegiances.”“This consultation cannot be justified by citing electoral considerations, as Yadav is neither a Member of Parliament nor is he eligible to vote in the Vice-Presidential electoral college,” the signatories said, stressing that the meeting “appears to serve no legitimate political purpose.”Among those endorsing the statement are senior advocates Pinky Anand, Sanjay Jain, Sonia Mathur and Anil Soni, as well as Motising Mohta, Milind Patil, Parijat Pande and Subhash Ghatge, former chairpersons and members of the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa.The group termed the meeting “worrying” and described it as “a fundamental error in judgment” by a candidate aspiring to hold one of the nation’s highest constitutional offices.Without naming anyone, they also criticised the silence of “certain factions” over Reddy’s actions.“What is equally telling is the silence of certain factions, who are usually up-in-arms at far lesser allegations. This incident only re-confirms the partisan nature of those who position themselves as self-proclaimed custodians of constitutional morality,” they said.Such silence, they added, reveals a willingness to ignore “serious lapses for self-serving interest and political convenience.”