The BJP, realising the futility of fielding a presidential candidate of its own given the growing support for the prospective candidature of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, is toying with the idea of bargaining for the vice-president’s post with the Congress in return for supporting the veteran Congress leader for Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Sources said the BJP is considering the name of senior leader Murli Manohar Joshi for vice-president.
Top BJP leader Sushma Swaraj had said earlier the party would not back a Congress candidate as it did not want to be seen hobnobbing with the ruling coalition with the 2014 general elections approaching. But given the increasing support for Mr Mukherjee across the political spectrum, it appears to be having second thoughts. UPA allies like the DMK, NCP and RLD have indicated they would support Mr Mukherjee and the Left seems to have no reservations.
It is believed the Trinamul Congress too will eventually come around as it cannot afford to oppose a Bengali reaching the country’s highest office. More important, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadis, Mayawati’s BSP and Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD are expected to endorse the Congress nominee.
With Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK and Naveen Patnaik’s BJD rooting for former Lok Sabha Speaker P.A. Sangma (of the NCP), the BJP’s options are getting limited.
So instead of fielding a candidate who will certainly lose, it is hoping to do a deal with the Congress under which it can at least wrest the vice-presidency.