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| APJ Abdul Kalam |
The resurrection of Kalam's candidature came on a day when the Congress, which is hamstrung in the numbers game, emphasized the need for forging a 'consensus' on the Presidential election as UPA, NDA and non-NDA Opposition are not in a position to elect a candidate of their choice. Congress and allies have indicated dialogue for zeroing in on a jointly-sponsored candidate.
NCP leader and agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, who had reportedly favoured a 'non-political person' for President, on Monday said that he had only talked about an 'agreeable candidate.' "I have not said this. I have only spoken about an agreed candidate,'' Pawar told newspersons when asked to comment on his remark favouring 'a non-political candidate.' He argued that neither UPA nor NDA had the numbers to get their candidate elected as President, and, therefore, a process of consultation had become necessary. "I am sure the leadership concerned will start the process. We need to think about agreed candidature at this moment,'' he said.
The group of ministers on media also underlined the importance of a consensus candidate. Health ministerGhulam Nabi Azad, a member of the group, told newspersons on Monday afternoon that the office of President was big and no political party had the majority to get its candidate elected. "If the President is elected, it will be through consensus. In a democracy, every group has a right to express its opinion about an individual or a leader,'' he said. Asked about Pawar's remarks, HRD minister Kapil Sibal, who is also a member of the GoM, said, "we have been working towards a consensus.''
Congress, as the largest political player, is expected to convene a meeting of its core committee soon to set the ball rolling in finalising the name of its presidential candidate. "It is our duty to listen to our allies. The party is open-minded. The core committee will meet and decide on the issue. A final decision will be taken only after discussions with our allies,'' party spokesperson Renuka Chowdhury said.
The electoral college is 10,98,882-strong and Congress has only 30% of the total votes. UPA, therefore, will have to seek the help of other parties such as the Samajwadi Party and BSP to push the candidature of its nominee. It will also have to mollify ally, Trinamool Congress, which has been making disconcerting noises on the issue. SP general secretary Kiranmoy Nanda had met West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata last week to explore the possibility of forging a common strategy on the presidential poll. Another SP leader, Shahid Siddiqui, too pitched in for a consensus candidate, and said his party was not averse to the idea of re-nominating former President APJ Abdul Kalam if there was unanimity among political parties. He reminded that it was his party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav who had floated Kalam's name for the post of President a decade earlier.
President Pratibha Patil's tenure comes to an end on July 24, and there is expectation that the process of selecting her successor will start soon.
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