With the United Progressive Alliance declaring Hamid Ansari as its candidate for the post of vice president, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday decided to go for a contest, but maintained that it will finalise its nominee after consulting National Democratic Alliance allies.
Suspense mounted on Monday over the stand of two crucial United Progressive Alliance allies -- Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party -- over the Presidential poll for which the Election Commission is expected to announce a date shortly. At the heart of the strategy of Trinamool and SP is their clamour for a financial package from the Centre, but the Congress dismissed any possibility of a quid pro quo between any help to states and the Presidential poll.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Mamata Banerjee, who kept up the suspense till the last moment before backing Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential elections, on Wednesday attended Mukherjee's oath taking ceremony while no Chief Minister from Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states were present.
After having decided to abstain from voting in the Presidential poll, the Communist Party of India on Wednesday extended support to United Progressive Alliance's nominee Hamid Ansari for his re-election as vice president.
According to senior leaders, the prime minister's assistance could be taken to mollify Banerjee. If the PM, for whom Banerjee has great respect, were to talk to her before Mukherjee visits Kolkata on July 8, then there could be chances of a turnaround in the TMC's position
The BJP core group met in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss the strategy for ensuring that all party legislators in the states and in Parliament vote for P A Sangma in the Presidential poll and decided to use this opportunity to highlight failures of the United Progressive Alliance government.
The Telugu Desam Party indicated that it may support United Progressive Alliance candidate Pranab Mukherjee in next month's Presidential election.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Friday said naming of A P J Abdul Kalam in the Presidential race has led to chaos and reaffirmed its support to the Congress' candidate.
The Shiv Sena on Sunday announced that it will support the National Democratic Alliance nominee for the post of Vice President of India.
As part of efforts to secure maximum support for Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential poll, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad on Thursday held consultations with Congress President Sonia Gandhi.
After division in the National Democratic Alliance ranks, the Bharatiya Janata Party and some other allies appeared set to back P A Sangma, who quit the Nationalist Congress Party, ignoring its direction not to contest the Presidential poll against United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee.
National Democratic Alliance Working Chairperson L K Advani on Thursday met Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in Chennai on to discuss fresh developments in the run-up to Presidential election and they agreed to "coordinate" with each other on their strategy.
Union Agriculture Minister and key United Progressive Alliance leader Sharad Pawar on Sunday favoured a non-political candidate as the next President in view of the fact that UPA and National Democratic Alliance did not have the strength to elect their own nominee.
With the United Progressive Alliance announcing the candidature of Pranab Mukherjee for the President's post, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Finance Minister have reached out to Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar for support but he was non-committal.
With party leader Shivanand Tiwari's remark on United Progressive Alliance's handling of the economy creating unease in ally Bharatiya Janata Party, senior Janata Dal-United leaders on Saturday got into fire-fighting mode and advised its spokespersons to consult them before speaking out.
Launching his campaign for the Presidential election in which he appears set for a cakewalk, United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday appealed to all political parties to back his candidature, apparently eyeing Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress. Mukherjee met UPA's key partner Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's president M Karunanidhi at his residence in Chennai, formally kick-starting the campaign.
The BJP on Sunday authorised its president J P Nadda and Union minister Rajnath Singh to hold consultations with different political parties, including those in the opposition, on the president's election, in what is being seen as an outreach by the ruling party to arrive at a consensus on the choice for the top constitutional post.
They said the very sanctity of the Constitutional process was being destroyed through the 'smear campaign' against her.
Janata Dal - United chief Sharad Yadav on Friday strongly denied that his party was gravitating towards the Congress and the United Progressive Alliance in the wake of its support to Pranab Mukherjee's Presidential candidature."That is absurd. It has no meaning," he said when asked about perceptions of his party cosying up to the Congress.
At the 13 Talkatora Road bungalow, his home for 16 years, Mukherjee confessed: "Unlike the Lok Sabha elections, in this election, there is no worry."
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday thanked Trinamool Congress president and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee when she informed him of the party's decision to support United Progressive Alliance candidate Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential election.
Opposition-backed Presidential poll nominee P A Sangma on Monday said he would move the Supreme Court against the Election Commission's decision to quash the complaint against United Progressive Alliance candidate Pranab Mukherjee's nomination papers after the elections.
Bhartiya Janata Party general secretary Anant Kumar and Janata Party chief Dr Subramanian Swamy will meet the Election Commission to complain about the Rajya Sabha secretary general for rejecting their demand that United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee should be disqualified, as he was the chairman of the Indian statistical Institute Kolkata when he filed his nomination paper for the Presidential election.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is expected to file on June 28 his nomination papers for the Presidential election.
Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar on Thursday met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and assured her of support to any candidate that the United Progressive Alliance puts forth. "I told her (Gandhi) that whoever UPA nominates, we will support," Pawar told reporters after his 30-minute meeting with the Congress chief to discuss the issue of Presidential election.
Was a Mumbai tycoon behind Wednesday's political drama? A Rediff Correspondent discusses the conspiracy theories making the rounds.
Former Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party official spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain on Sunday said his party would disclose its strategy on Presidential elections only after the ruling United Progressive Alliance coalition announces name of its candidate.
Three MPs, including former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, came on wheelchairs.
Mayawati said she would announce her party's stand in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Women leaders banged steel plates with spoons as men rang hand-bells during their symbolic demonstration at Vijay Chowk leading to the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
However, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, hosting a meeting of the leaders of the Third Front in Chennai on Sunday, said the Front would 'choose a nominee' for the presidential election.
Vice President Hamid Ansari will file nomination papers on Wednesday for his re-election to the post amid expectations in the United Progressive Alliance that he is set for a comfortable win.
Pranab Mukherjee, United Progressive Alliance's nominee for the Presidential poll, on Saturday said he was not surprised by the decision of ally Trinamool Congress's chief Mamata Banerjee not to support his candidature.
Incumbent Hamid Ansari, who was named as United Progressive Alliance's nominee for the Vice Presidential election, on Saturday said he accepts the decision with "all humility" and thanked all political parties who supported his candidature.
As part of their ongoing campaign for the July 19 Presidential election, United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee and his rival P A Sangma will be separately visiting Gujarat in next couple of days.
United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee on Monday met ruling Congress MPs, MLAs and MLCs as part of his campaign for the July 19 Presidential election.
Opposition backed Presidential candidate P A Sangma will file his nomination on Thursday, the day when United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee will submit his papers.
The six presidential nominees to the Rajya Sabha have reportedly been handpicked by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, in an attempt to reassert her authority in the United Progressive Alliance government, which has allegedly acquired a pro-United States stance under the aegis of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.The five persons nominated are Mani Shanker Aiyer, Javed Akhtar, Dr Balchandra Mungekar, Bombay Jayshri and Dr Ram Dyal Munda.
The print order for former President A P J Abdul Kalam's yet to be released book 'Turning Points -- A Journey Through Challenges', a sequel to his earlier work, 'Wings of Fire', is being stepped up to 50,000 copies from 30,000 earlier.
Sources in the Samajwadi Party said that Mulayam Singh Yadav, his cousin and party general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav and another senior leader Naresh Aggarwal have held at least five rounds of discussion with Congress leaders
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