While the opposition has yet to choose a candidate for the presidential election, the BJP will conduct its parliamentary board meeting today, when it is expected to finalize its choice for the July 18 polls. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend the conference digitally, and the BJP has already assembled a 14-member election management committee. With little over a week before the nomination deadline, both parties scramble to find candidates with broad public support.
The BJP has previously said that their presidential candidate will be announced by the end of this week. The governing party has around 49 per cent of the Electoral College, and crossing the 50 per cent level is required to win the President’s Election.
Party President JP Nadda and Union Minister Rajnath Singh have been tasked with coordinating with NDA and UPA allies, as well as non-NDA and non-UPA allies, to achieve the halfway point. Many parties have reached out to these two leaders. The BJP has also developed a ‘crack squad’ that includes numerous Union Ministers and top bureaucrats conducting their coordination and chatting to many possible candidates.
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Everything is hush-hush and ‘top secret,’ as is usual with the BJP. The Prime Minister is also expected to attend the parliamentary board of directors meeting. It’s unclear if he’ll be there in person or online.
Following the meeting, the PM will be told of the possibilities, and figures will be discussed in talks with the ‘crack team.’ There’s also a good chance that the parliamentary board will convene again.
Meanwhile, in the opposition camp, heated debates are taking place.
Mamata Banerjee will be absent from today’s opposition conference, but her nephew and Trinamool politician Abhishek Banerjee are expected to attend. So far, three candidates have declined the invitation to run for president as part of the combined opposition. Sharad Pawar of the National Congress Party, Farooq Abdullah of the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, and Gopal Krishna Gandhi, MK Gandhi’s grandson, have declined the offers thus far.
According to news agency ANI, opposition leaders from 17 parties will gather today at Sharad Pawar’s home to strategize for the presidential election.
Nominations are due by June 29th, and the elections will be placed on July 18th.
The BJP hoped to avoid a battle by presenting a candidate with whom everyone could agree.
Many names have been suggested, but the BJP, as it did in 2017, may drop a surprise, as it has done in the past. In political circles, there is also the possibility that a tribal leader may be raised to the role of President this time.
There would be no assurance until the two parties made an official announcement.
