Candidate for Presidential polls cannot be elected without Congress: Mallikarjun Kharge
New Delhi, June 15: Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha and Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said that a candidate for the upcoming Presidential elections cannot be elected without Congress. The remarks come ahead of a meeting of opposition leaders called by TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
On Wednesday, CM Banerjee called a meeting to forge a consensus for fielding a joint candidate against the NDA in the Presidential election. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has, however, decided to skip the meeting, sources said.
Speaking on this development, Congress' Kharge said, "Electing a candidate (for the upcoming Presidential elections) can't happen without Congress as we have nearly 50 per cent votes. But, we will still go to the meeting to fight together... as we don't want to break the unity. We want to fight against BJP."
Kharge further added, "Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and many big leaders aren't participating. We want unity and a unanimous (Presidential) candidate."
Meanwhile, Banerjee met Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar at his residence in Mumbai on Tuesday. The TMC leader met separately to try and convince Pawar to be the common opposition candidate for the top constitutional post. Pawar, however, has turned down the proposal, according to sources.
The West Bengal Chief Minister is in Delhi for the meeting which aims to explore the possibility of formulating a common strategy with other Opposition parties for the Presidential polls.
Several Opposition leaders will attend the meeting called by Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee to discuss Presidential polls to put up a united fight against the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
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The Presidential elections are scheduled to take place on July 18 and the results will be declared on July 21.
Former minister HD Deve Gowda and his son and Janata Dal (S) leader HD Kumaraswamy, Rashtriya Lok Dal's Jayant Chaudhary and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti are among the leaders who will take part in the meeting.
TR Baalu will represent MK Stalin's Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Shiv Sena's Subhash Desai will attend the meeting. Samajwadi Party and National Conference will also be in attendance.
According to sources, Congress will also attend the meeting at the Constitution Club. The meeting is expected to be attended by Congress heavyweights such as Mallikarjun Kharge, Jairam Ramesh, and Randeep Singh Surjewala. Banerjee has also invited former BJP ally Shiromani Akali Dal to the meeting, but it is unlikely to participate.
D Raja, general secretary of the Communist Party of India, stated on Tuesday that Left parties are likely to attend the meeting.
Mamata Banerjee had earlier written a letter to 22 leaders, including Left parties, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and chief ministers of opposition-ruled states.
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-PTC News
