The Congress on Friday advocated the need for unifying the Opposition to “defend the constitutional values of Republic of India”.
leaders of 17 Opposition parties, including West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Ministers Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati, former Union Ministers Sharad Pawar (NCP), Sharad Yadav (JD-U) and lalu Prasad (RJD), CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury, National Conference chief Omar Abdullah, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav, DMK leader Kanimozhi and JMM’s Hemant Soren attended the much-talked about Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s lunch.
The lunch turned out to be significant one as Sonia was successful in bringing together bitter political rivals like the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party in UP as well as West Bengal rivals, the TMC and the left parties .
Apart from Sonia and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, the Congress was represented by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and party leaders like Ahmed Patel and Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Talking on the possibility the Opposition fielding its own candidate for the office of President, Mamata said, “If the Opposition parties could not agree on a unanimous candidate for the upcoming presidential election, a “small committee” could be formed to help them select a suitable nominee.”
After the meeting, Azad and Sharad Yadav read out a joint statement, stating that it has been the normal practice that the ruling party takes the initiative to build a consensus on the name of the presidential candidate.
“Elections to the posts of President and Vice-President are forthcoming. The normal practice has been that the ruling party takes the initiative to build a consensus on the names of the candidates for these important offices. This has not happened so far. If acceptable, consensual candidates do not emerge, then we (Opposition parties) shall decide to field such persons who shall steadfastly defend the constitutional values of our Republic,” said a statement issued jointly by the Opposition parties.
Yadav said the Opposition appeals to the BJP to take the lead and come up with a consensus candidate for the President and the Vice-President’s post, as per traditions, but a consensus between the ruling and Opposition sides appears remote.
The Opposition parties also expressed their resolve to strengthen floor coordination in Parliament to oppose this Government’s policies “ that are imposing unprecedented burden on all sections of our people, farmers, working people, youth, SC/STs, Minorities, women and other weaker sections of the society in various parts of the country.”
The participants also expressed concern over the prevailing grave situation in Jammu & Kashmir.
The Congress has been advocating unity among non-NDA parties ahead of the Presidential election which, it believes, can be taken forward to the upcoming assembly polls in states such as Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, besides the lok Sabha elections in 2019.
Several names have been doing the rounds as probable candidates. Among them are former West Bengal Governor and Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Gopal Krishna Gandhi, former JD (U) president Yadav, former lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar and NCP chief Pawar.
The NCP leader, however, has ruled himself out of the race. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has also mooted a second term for incumbent Pranab Mukherjee and suggested that the ruling BJP try and build consensus on him.
Among others present were SP’s Naresh Aggarwal and Ram Gopal Yadav, AIUDF’s Badruddin Ajmal, JMM’s Sanjiv Kumar, JD(S)’s C S Puttaraju and RSP’s N K Premachandran.