While leaders of 17 opposition parties met on Wednesday to reach a consensus on a joint candidate for the presidential election, senior BJP leaders on Wednesday reached out to prominent opposition leaders Sharad Pawar of the NCP and Farooq Abdullah of the NC and three of the Two names were released. The meeting was called by TMC leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The third name in the list of possible candidates in this meeting was that of former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi.
Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party had authorized party president JP Nadda and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh to hold discussions with other parties to reach a consensus on the presidential candidate ahead of the July 18 elections. On Wednesday, Rajnath Singh called on Sharad Pawar, Mamata Banerjee, Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress), Akhilesh Yadav (SP), Mayawati (BSP), Shibu Soren (JMM), Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik (BJD), Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan. Spoke to Reddy. (YSR-CP), and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, JD(U) which is part of the ruling NDA alliance.
Rajnath Singh and JP Nadda spoke to the opposition leaders
When asked about Rajnath Singh’s conversation with Kharge on Wednesday, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “It is a formality that Rajnath Singh was asked to seek support without informing anything.” JP Nadda spoke to Farooq Abdullah, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma (NPP), All Jharkhand Students’ Union leaders, Naga People’s Front and some independent candidates. BJD, YSR-CP, AAP, TRS, SAD and Sikkim Democratic Front, who were also invited for the opposition meeting, did not turn up for the meeting. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Banerjee said there is a consensus on Pawar’s name, but he is not inclined to contest, leaving the ground open for further deliberations in the coming days.
Sharad Pawar denies candidature
However, Sharad Pawar later tweeted, “I sincerely appreciate the leaders of the opposition parties for suggesting my name as a candidate for the election of the President of India at the meeting held in Delhi. But I would like to state that I have humbly declined my offer of candidature. I am happy to continue my service for the betterment of the common man.” On the other hand, when another candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi was contacted, he said, “It is too early to comment on this.”
Presidential election and opposition united on 75th year of independence
The resolution, which was passed in a meeting that lasted for nearly two hours, said, “In the upcoming presidential election which is being held in the 75th year of India’s independence, we have decided to field a common candidate who is truly the protector of the country.” can work as Constitution and prevent the Modi government from causing further damage to the country’s democracy and social fabric.” Terming Wednesday’s meeting as “the beginning”, Mamata Banerjee said, “Opposition stands together when our democratic system is being bulldozed and every institution is being completely politically shielded.” TMC sources said Banerjee in her speech condemned the ED’s questioning of Rahul Gandhi, saying, “He was being harassed like Abhishek Banerjee while corrupt BJP leaders are treated as holy cows.”
Mallikarjun Kharge and Surjewala arrived at the meeting
Congress which was uneasy with TMC’s apparent attempt to lead the opposition party on the issue. Congress had sent Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and its Rajya Sabha MPs Jairam Ramesh and Randeep Surjewala for the meeting. Kharge said the Congress does not have any “specific candidate” in its mind as of now, but he will sit with other parties to finalize a candidate. He said the Congress will play a creative role in ensuring that the parties reach a consensus candidate in the next few days. “Let us be proactive about this matter and not be reactive on it,” Kharge said.
Kharge told how the President of the country is
He said that the Presidential candidate should be one who is committed to uphold the Constitution of India, its values, principles and provisions in letter and spirit, should be committed to guarantee that all the institutions of our democracy function without fear or favour, Any person committed to protect his rights. Commit to speak boldly against the forces of prejudice, hatred, bigotry and polarization without prejudice, without prejudice, while preserving the secular fabric of all our citizens and our diverse society and a powerful force to advance social justice and empowerment Commit to being.
This solidarity should last even after the presidential election
Kharge further said, “I know that in this meeting many parties compete with each other in the assembly elections. But despite this, this meeting is taking place, no one has stopped it. The reason behind this is that each of us has taken a big national vision and have come here for a bigger purpose. Let this feeling continue. We should remain united and disciplined and not run after political numbers against each other. The unity we are showing now will have its effect even after the presidential election.
These leaders of the opposition also reached the meeting
The Left parties were represented by Binoy Viswam of the CPI, Elaram Karim of the CPI(M), NK Premachandran of the RSP and Dipankar Bhattacharya of the CPI(ML). Others present in the meeting included former prime minister and JD(S) leader HD Deve Gowda and his son HD Kumarasamy, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, RLD leader Jayant Choudhary, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, ET Mohammad Bashir of IUML, Vijay Hansdak of JMM. Were. DMK’s TR Baalu, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi and MLC Subhash Desai and RJD’s Rajya Sabha member Manoj Jha were also present.
Opposition to hold another meeting before presidential election
A source present there was told that the opposition leaders are likely to hold another meeting in Delhi or Mumbai next week on the issue. It has been decided to increase the support base of the opposition from parties like BJD, YSR-CP, TRS and AAP ahead of the next meeting, possibly on June 21. Sharad Pawar will decide the time and place for this meeting. The NDA already has over 48 per cent vote share in the electoral college to elect a new president. With Pawar refusing to contest, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and former West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi also emerged as possible options.