NDA and non-NDA parties are holding discussions on the upcoming Presidential Election due on 17 July. Both the ruling NDA and the opposition parties are making efforts to lure as many parties to support their candidate as possible. Though efforts are even being made to finalize a single consensus candidate and avoid the contest all together.
BJP chief made a 3 member committee comprising of the union ministers, Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and M Venkaiah Naidu, to reach out to all political parties to discuss about the candidate. Congress President Sonia Gandhi had also organised a lunch meet last month inviting almost all the opposition parties to discuss about the same.
But Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has still not been approached by any of the parties to know their hold on the issue. Though, AAP members have had informal talks with CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury, JDU’s Sharad Yadav and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee.
Congress the main opposition party is deliberately keeping AAP out of the loop for any discussion on President Election, making it feel isolated. Main reason for this neglection by Congress is that in the past, Kejriwal had often attacked the Congress, especially Robert Vadra, the son-in-law of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. The NCP is believed to be ignoring AAP because of Chief Minister Kejriwal’s personal attacks on NCP leader Sharad Pawar in the past.
The presidential poll is scheduled to be held on July 17. The last date to file the nomination is 28 June and NDA is likely to file it by 23 June before PM Narendra Modi leaves for his US tour.
AAP said it was waiting for the government and the opposition to make their stands clear on candidates for the highest constitutional post. A senior AAP leader also indicated that, it may not go with a candidate suggested by the Congress, but may back someone supported by the entire opposition.
AAP has 86 MLAs and four MPs in the Lok Sabha.