NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar turned down West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s offer to be the opposition’s presidential candidate. He made the decision official at a meeting of opposition parties on Wednesday.
Sharad Pawar, 81, had earlier put an end to speculation about the top job during a meeting with his party leaders, who revealed that the former Union Minister was unwilling to fight “a losing battle.”
RSP’s NK Premchandran, however, said that Banerjee later also suggested the names of Farooq Abdullah and Gopalkrishna Gandhi as possible opposition candidates.
“All parties requested NCP leader Sharad Pawar to contest President’s poll as Opposition’s candidate, but he declined. After Pawar’s refusal, leaders requested Mallikarjun Kharge, Mamata Banerjee, and Sharad Pawar to discuss with parties on joint opposition presidential candidate.” DMK’s T R Baalu told PTI.
Leaders of the Congress, Samajwadi Party, NCP, DMK, RJD, and the Left parties attended the meeting called by the Trinamool Congress supremo, while the AAP, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), and Odisha’s ruling BJD skipped it.
Leaders of Shiv Sena, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), National Conference, PDP, JD(S), RSP, IUML, RLD and the JMM attended the meeting, which took place on a day the nomination for the presidential election began.
Leaders of the Congress, Samajwadi Party, NCP, DMK, RJD and the Left parties attended the meeting called by the Trinamool Congress supremo, while the AAP, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and Odisha’s ruling BJD skipped it.
Leaders of Shiv Sena, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), National Conference, PDP, JD(S), RSP, IUML, RLD and the JMM attended the meeting, which took place on a day the nomination for the presidential election began.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee last week invited leaders of 19 political parties, including seven chief ministers, for a meeting in the national capital to produce a confluence of opposition voices for the election on July 18.
A day ahead of the meeting, Banerjee and Left party leaders met NCP chief Sharad Pawar at his residence separately to try and convince him to be the common opposition candidate for the top constitutional post.
With numbers on its side — the ruling NDA has about half the votes of the electoral college — and the possible support of fence-sitters like the BJD, AIADMK and YSRCP, the NDA candidate will likely sail through the contest.
With inputs from PTI.
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