The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday decided to support Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha for the Presidential elections scheduled on July 18. AAP leader and MP Sanjay Singh announced this on Saturday after the AAP's political affairs committee (PAC) met in Delhi.
The decision was taken in the PAC meeting chaired by AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.The meeting was attended by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and other members of the PAC, including Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, Punjab MP Raghav Chadha, and MLA Atishi, among others. "We have respect for Draupadi Murmu but will support Yashwant Sinhaji," Singh said. The AAP is the only non-BJP, non-Congress outfit having governments in two states —Delhi and Punjab.
Sinha is the candidate of a joint opposition front spearheaded by Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee that excluded the AAP. "The PAC unanimously decided that the AAP will support Yashwant Sinha. All AAP MLAs and MPs will vote for Sinha on July 18," Singh said. The AAP acknowledges and respects NDA nominee Droupadi Murmu's candidature in the presidential elections but the PAC has deemed it fit to support the opposition candidate, he said.
AAP has 10 Rajya Sabha MPs from two states including three from Delhi. Also, the party has a total 156 MLAs including 92 in Punjab, 62 in Delhi and two in Goa. In 10.86 lakh-strong electoral college, AAP has votes with a total value of 21,308. The party has 10 MPs with a vote value of 7,000, 92 MLAs in Punjab with a vote value of 10,672, 62 MLAs in Delhi with a vote value of 3,596 and two MLAs in Goa with a vote value of 40.