New Delhi: The BJP Parliamentary Board is set to meet on Monday evening to decide on NDA's vice-presidential candidate who will take on Opposition nominee Gopalkrishna Gandhi.


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Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and Tamil Nadu Governor C Vidyasagar Rao are among the front-runners, according to media reports. 


The meeting and announcement of NDA's vice-presidential candidate was slated to happen on Sunday, but it was postponed to Monday.


After the parliamentary board meeting, all NDA MPs and leaders will formally meet to finalise the the vice-presidential pick.


The meeting would be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah. Today's meetings are important since the BJP-led NDA lacks numbers in the Rajya Sabha and it needs to pick a consensus candidate acceptable across party lines.


The BJP, however, is confident of getting between 500 and 550 votes, according to an Indian Express report.


The JD(U), which had announced its support to the NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind in the Presidential election, will vote in favour of the UPA candidate in the vice-presidential election.


The selection of either Naidu or Rao is being seen as the BJP's efforts to make inroads in South India ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. 


Naidu hails from Andhra Pradesh while Rao is from Telangana. The names of Madhubani MP Hukumdev Narayan Yadav, Manipur governor Najma Heptulla, and Kerala governor P Sathasivam are among other vice-presidential hopefuls.


The elections for the 13th Vice-President of India, if required, will be held on 5 August with the counting too taking place on the same day. 


The last date for filing nominations is 18 July. 


The scrutiny will take place on the same day and the last date for withdrawing nomination is 21 July.