Presidential polls: BJP to consult allies after June 15

New Delhi: The BJP will start formal consultations with its allies and with the Opposition on the presidential polls, but only after June 15, when the third anniversary celebrations of the Narendra Modi government will be over. BJP president Amit Shah had earlier said his party will hold discussions “with everybody, including the Opposition parties” on the issue. The new President will be elected by July 25 and the ruling side is confident that the next President will be a nominee of the BJP-led NDA.

The BJP is of the view that the “so-called” Opposition unity over fielding a joint presidential candidate was “exposed” when only 17 parties attended the luncheon meeting hosted by Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday.

The Opposition parties want the government to build a consensus on the presidential candidate, else they will field their own candidate. Interestingly, the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD and the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party did not attend the Opposition gathering.

The BJP thinks the Opposition camp will lose if it fields its candidate as some non-NDA parties will support the NDA candidate.

The BJP, sources said, feels that with the DMK attending the meeting, its arch-rival and Tamil Nadu’s ruling party AIADMK will back the NDA candidate. Also, efforts to woo the Shiv Sena by the Opposition camp will “remain unsuccessful” and its ally will not “ditch” the NDA on the presidential candidate issue, said a senior BJP leader. The Sena had supported the UPA candidate in 2007 as well as in 2012.

After some non-NDA parties like Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana’s ruling TRS indicated their support to the NDA candidate, the BJP is confident that its candidate will be the next President of India.