Former LS Speaker, Meira Kumar’s meeting with party chief, Sonia Gandhi, on Wednesday, fuelled speculation that she has emerged as the party’s front-runner for the presidential candidate.
Cracks in the opposition emerged after the JD(U) decided to extend its support to NDA nominee, Ram Nath Kovind, on Wednesday.
Following the disturbances among the members of the Opposition, senior leaders of the Congress and other non-NDA parties are trying to find ways to keep the opposition together.
The Congress, which is coordinating the opposition meet, expressed the hope that leaders of all parties which attended the May 26 luncheon hosted by Gandhi would be present on Thursday.
Sources said that senior Congress and other opposition leaders talked to several leaders to ensure the presence of all non-NDA parties at the meeting, which will decide on the opposition’s presidential candidate for the polls.
“No matter what happens, we will contest the election,” a senior Left leader said.
On being asked about the Congress’s choice for the poll, AICC spokesperson, Manish Tewari, said that it was a “hypothetical” question and the Opposition will take a decision on a joint strategy in the meeting on Thursday.
“Given that we are talking about the Highest Constitutional office in the country and there are opposition parleys which are undergoing, it would be inappropriate for me to second-guess this,” he said about a possible Congress candidate.
