Presidential Poll: Opposition waits for ‘mutually acceptable’ candidate, Shah forms panel to hold consultations

The ruling NDA and a loosely knit group of opposition parties would soon intensify efforts to zero in on a “mutually acceptable” presidential candidate, and go their separate ways if a consensus proves elusive.

After a prolonged silence on the issue, BJP chief Amit Shah today constituted a three-member committee comprising union ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and M Venkaiah Naidu which will hold consultations with the NDA allies and the opposition on the issue.

“This committee will consult leaders of different political parties over the presidential poll and try to evolve a consensus,” a BJP statement said. Meanwhile, the 10-member team set up by the opposition for finding a consensus nominee will meet here for the first time on June 14. They have already held several rounds of talks on the issue but have not yet announced a joint opposition candidate.

Sources in the opposition said they were waiting for the ruling dispensation to come up with its candidate and will discuss if the name proposed by the NDA is acceptable to them. A senior leader said if a consensus proved elusive during the talks with the NDA, the opposition would put up a joint candidate against the ruling dispensation’s nominee. The …read more