Explained: Who will be the Opposition candidate for Presidential polls? Is Sharad Pawar out?

The race for the upcoming Presidential polls is hotting up with names doing the rounds on who could head to Rashtrapati Bhawan next, as President Ram Nath Kovind’s term ends on 24 July. A name that has kept cropping up since all the deliberations began is that of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar. On Tuesday, 14 June, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee held talks with the veteran leader at his residence in Delhi. Banerjee and Pawar met ahead of a big opposition discussion to be held today to discuss a joint strategy for the 18 July Presidential election . Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress wrote on Twitter, “Two stalwart leaders set the stage for the meeting of all progressive opposition forces; set to happen tomorrow at the Constitution Club, New Delhi. Our resolve to fight divisive forces grows stronger!”

Our honorable chairperson @MamataOfficial met Shri @PawarSpeaks today.

Two stalwart leaders set the stage for the meeting of all progressive opposition forces; set to happen tomorrow at the Constitution Club, New Delhi.

Our resolve to fight divisive forces grows stronger! pic.twitter.com/9Pm3abPMEN

— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) June 14, 2022

But is Pawar the Opposition candidate in the Presidential race? We take a look. Does he have the support? The clamour started after Congress hinted at its support for Pawar as the Presidential candidate. Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge met the 81-year-old at his residence in Mumbai last week with a message from party chief Sonia Gandhi. She also talked to other opposition leaders on Saturday. “Congress President Sonia Gandhi had reached out and deliberated the issue of the upcoming Presidential election with Sharad Pawar, Mamata Banerjee and some other opposition leaders,” said a statement from the Congress. “As per her discussions with other opposition leaders, she deputed the LoP Mallikarjun Kharge to co-ordinate with other leaders in view of her ill health owing to Covid-19.” The party emphasised that India needs a president who can protect the Constitution, democratic, institutions, and citizens; a leader who can add a “healing touch” to the country’s “fractured social fabric”. The Trinamool, too, is said to be backing a politician who can reach out to Opposition parties which have never been part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance and Pawar is best-suited for that role. Also read: How does India choose its President? Is Pawar keen to fight? Despite the backing from Opposition parties, the NCP leader is reluctant to join the race. The party said that its leader does not want to fight a losing battle. “No doubt, if Pawar saheb becomes President of India, every Marathi person’s chest will swell with pride. But the question is this: Do we have the required numbers,” asked senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal. Another senior NCP minister said that Pawar is a “people’s man” and won’t “restrict himself to the Rashtrapati Bhavan”. “…I don’t think he is keen on it (contesting the election). Saheb (Pawar) is a people’s man who loves meeting people. He will not restrict himself to the Rashtrapati Bhavan,” news agency PTI quoted the leader as saying. Pawar, however, plays a crucial role in the ongoing consultations over the next president. In New Delhi, he also met Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja. “Our understanding is that he is not keen. He said he has many political commitments,” said the Communist Party of India’s Raja. Does that mean Pawar is out of the race? Even after the NCP’s stand on Pawar, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut insisted that there could be a consensus on the veteran leader’s name as an Opposition candidate in the Presidential polls. He added that the NCP chief’s nod was needed for things to move forward, according to a report in The Times of India. Raut, whose party is in alliance with the NCP and Congress in Maharastra, said that the BJP must “elect a proper President and an able administrator and not a rubber stamp”. “If the opposition parties are coming together for the President’s election, and the ruling party also believes that the country should get a good president like Dr Abdul Kalam or Pranab Mukherjee, then only one name comes up for consideration and that is Sharad Pawar’s. Even Modi will agree to this,” he said. What are Pawar’s ambitions? Instead of fighting for the president’s post, the NCP chief has his eyes on the role of the next convenor of the UPA, reports The Hindustan Times. However, Congress is not backing that idea. Those close to Pawar believe that if he can get the numbers from non-UPA parties to become the president, he will also have the support to lead the opposition for the 2024 general elections. He was keen to become the chairperson or convenor of UPA or any other combine of all opposition parties against the ruling BJP, the report says. If not Pawar then who? While there is no consensus yet, the Opposition is determined to put up a united fight against the BJP in the Presidential polls. [caption id=“attachment_10795941” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson and former West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi’s name has cropped up as a possible Opposition candidate. PTI[/caption] Some leaders have reportedly reached out to Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson and former West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi as a possible choice, according to media reports. He was the consensus opposition candidate for the post of vice president of India in 2017 but lost to M Venkaiah Naidu in the election. Gandhi has asked for time until Wednesday to convey his decision. Does an Opposition candidate stand a chance? The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance does not have the numbers to guarantee a victory. The electoral college consists of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state assemblies and the BJP has a majority only in the Lower House. The BJP and its allies have 48 per cent votes – 5.26 lakh in the electoral college of 10.86 lakh votes. It would need the support of parties like the Biju Janata Dal, which has over 31,000 votes, Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSRCP, approximately 43,000 votes, and AIADMK which has 15,000. However, these parties have committed to backing the BJP. In the 2017 Presidential election too, the NDA did not have the required numbers but it got support from Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), YSR Congress and BJD for Kovind against Congress-led opposition candidate Meira Kumar. The BJP has appointed party chief JP Nadda and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to hold consultations with political parties on its Presidential nominee. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.