Narayanan exults as BJP obliges

Later briefing newsmen, party general secretary Pramod Mahajan said it felt that “among the contestants, Narayanan was the best suited and he has qualities which would have secured him the post even without being a Dalit. However, his being a Dalit and elevation to the highest office coinciding with the golden jubilee year of our Independence would add lustre to the highest office.”

He said Narayanan had sought his party’s support soon after the Congress and the United Front decided to field him as their candidate. Asked whether former Chief Election Commissioner T N Seshan fielded by its ally Shiv Sena figured at the meeting, Pramod Mahajan said the support for Seshan was sought by the Shiv Sena after the party had filed his nomination.

Asked whether any other individuals had approached the party for its support,Pramod Mahajan said “Seshan and several others had sought our support.

But, the party felt that Vice President Narayanan was the most appropriate choice for the President’s post and the party therefore decided to support him.”

Asked whether the party had discussed any candidates for the vice presidential election, he said “The meeting confined itself to the presidential election only. No other matter was discussed.”

The meeting was chaired by party’s senior vice president Sunder Singh Bhandari and attended among others by Atal Behari Vajpayee, Murli Manohar Joshi, Rajmata Vijaye Raje Scindia, K L Sharma, O Rajgopal, Kushabhau Thakre, Pramod Mahajan and Kailashpati Mishra.

Earlier, Narayanan today filed his nomination papers for the July 14 presidential polls.

The nomination papers were handed over by Narayanan, Prime Minister I K Gujral and Congress president Sitaram Kesri to the returning officer, Lok Sabha Secretary General S Gopalan. Narayanan is the joint candidate of the UF and Congress which together command 62 per cent of the votes of the electoral college.

The UF has 60 proposers and 60 seconders for Narayanan, while the Congress has 53 each. Former prime minister Narasimha Rao is among the proposers. The PM handed over the first set of nomination papers and Kesri submitted the second set. According to Congress sources, the party will file another set of nomination papers for Narayanan on Monday.

The UF’s proposers include Union ministers Indrajit Gupta, Ram Vilas Paswan, P Chidambaram, Chaturanan Mishra, Murasoli Maran, R L Jalappa, S Venugopalachari, Sisram Ola and B B Ramaiah. The four UF chief ministers of Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Assam have also proposed his name, along with senior leaders like G K Moopanar.

Among his seconders are Union ministers Srikanta Jena, C M Ibrahim, Saifuddin Soz, B S Ramoowalia, Chandradeo Prasad Verma and Jayanti Natarajan.From the Congress, other proposers and seconders include Sharad Pawar, S B Chavan, V B Reddy, Jitendra Prasad, Pranab Mukherjee, K Karunakaran, Shivraj Patil, Ahmed Patel, Rajesh Pilot and A K Anthony. Among those present were Deputy Chairperson Najma Heptulla, Moopanar and several other MPs.