Congress to ‘prez’ for consensus

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Samajwadi Party (SP), Trinamul Congress, BSP and AIADMK have reportedly held first-round informal talks with non-Congress leaders even as Congress has begun a 'consensus building' exercise on the Presidential election. A leader involved in the talks said the mood in the Opposition was against striking a deal with the ruling party.

“Let us see how Mulayam [Singh], Mamata [Banerjee] and Mayawati play their cards,” he said on Sunday, hinting that Congress could not get both the President and Vice-President posts.

In Chennai, senior Congress leader and defence minister A.K. Antony called on DMK chief M. Karunanidhi to build consensus on presidential polls. After an hour-long meeting, Mr Antony told reporters he had a “very fruitful discussion” on the “current political situation” but would not reveal details “to anyone but Soniaji”. DMK has 18 Lok Sabha members, seven in Rajya Sabha.

Sources said NDA and non-UPA parties could become relevant in the Presidential election only if Mulayam Singh Yadav of SP, Trinamul chief and West Bengal CM Ms Mamata and BSP’s Ms Mayawati become proactive. Currently, all three are with UPA. While Trinamul is part of the government, SP and BSP are backing it from outside.

“Congress managers know very well the mindset of these regional players and are working accordingly,” the leader said.

The BJP-led NDA and the so-called federal front would have no role to play without Mulayam, Mamata and Mayawati. The anti-Congress parties in the South, West Bengal, Odisha, who are not in NDA, do not want to ally with BJP.

BJP too is not keen on helping Congress irrespective of the candidate as it may weaken its plank ahead of Assembly elections in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Delhi.