Despite Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar’s reluctance to contest the Presidential polls, Opposition leaders continued to push the veteran politician to step in the arena with Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut stating on Tuesday that Mr. Pawar was the ideal candidate for President, and a “strong leader” who could safeguard the Constitution.
Speaking at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Raut, whose party is allied with the NCP in Maharashtra, further said that if the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre “needed a proper President and not a rubber stamp”, then there was no one as suitable as Mr. Pawar.
“If this country needs an ideal President and an excellent administrator, then the [Central] government ought to choose a proper candidate and not a rubber stamp…Sharad Pawar is the most prominent and experienced leader in the country today. He has remained unbeaten in elections in his political career over more than 50 years,” the Sena leader said.
Mr. Raut said that if all Opposition parties were coming together for the Presidential election, and if top leaders within the ruling BJP thought that the country ought to get a President of the likes of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam or Pranab Mukherjee, then the only name that presented itself was that of Mr. Pawar.
“Even Prime Minister Modi will agree to this [of the suitability of Mr. Pawar being the ideal candidate],” Mr. Raut said. He is in Ayodhya ahead of Maharashtra Minister Aaditya Thackeray’s June 15 visit.
At the same time, Mr. Raut acknowledged that in his conversations with the NCP chief, Mr. Pawar had not been inclined to contest and that the idea of his being the Presidential candidate of the joint Opposition could only move forward if the NCP chief gave his acceptance.
“I have expressed my view that he is the tallest leader in the country. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), too, has expressed this view and so has Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee,” Mr. Raut said, while urging the BJP to be broad-minded and give Mr. Pawar the nomination.
