Boost for BJP as Shiv Sena backs NDA presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind; Opposition braces for 'ideological contest'​

New Delhi/Mumbai: In a big boost for BJP, its oldest ally Shiv Sena on Tuesday said that it will support NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind in the presidential election.

The announcement in this regard was made by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai.

"We fully support Kovind. He has a nice personality. He has done a lot of good work," Thackeray said.

The Shiv Sena had earlier refrained from spelling out its stand on supporting Kovind for president.

Thackeray had earlier said that his party will not back Kovind if his candidature is aimed at garnering Dalit votes.

"If the name of Kovind is being put forward with a view to garner Dalit votes then the Sena is not interested. Sena has never indulged in the politics of hiding behind someone. We shall decide on whether or not to support the candidature of Kovind on Tuesday," Thackeray had said.

He, however, added that they would extend their support only if the decision was taken for the development of the nation.

The ruling NDA had on Monday nominated Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit, as its candidate for the Presidential elections to be held on July 17 as President Pranab Mukherjee will demit the office on July 25.

Meanwhile, Ram Nath Kovind today resigned as the Bihar Governor and his resignation was accepted by President Pranab Mukherjee. 

West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi was given additional charge of Bihar.

Though the main opposition Congress party, Left parties, Bahujan Samajwadi Party ( BSP), Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD), and Janata Dal (United) have not extended support to Kovind, other opposition parties like Odisha's Biju Janata Dal (BJD), and Andhra's YSR Congress Party have supported Kovind's candidature.

Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav also extended his support to Kovind by saying that he is a deserving candidate. 

The NDA, including Shiv Sena and the PDP of Jammu and Kashmir, which also extended support to Kovind, commands the support of 48.93 percent in the electoral college made up of MPs and MLAs. 

With the backing of parties outside the alliance like TRS (2 percent), AIADMK (5.39 percent), YSR Congress (1.53 percent) and BJD (2.99 percent), the NDA's support would cross the half way mark comfortably to reach nearly 61 percent in the July 17 battle.

It remains to be seen how the JD(U), BSP and Samajwadi Party, with a total vote value of over 5 percent, vote. 

The names doing the rounds as possible opposition candidates include former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, both of the Congress and both Dalits. 

Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad today flew to Patna to consult Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of the JD-U, which reportedly is said to be not averse to backing Kovind. Azad's meeting comes ahead of a JD-U meeting on Wednesday on the Presidential election.

Kovind was till Monday the Bihar Governor and shared a warm relationship with Nitish Kumar.

The Bihar Chief Minister is known to take a line different from other political parties as was reflected on the demonetisation decision.

Azad would also meet RJD Chief Lalu Prasad, who leans towards the Congress.

The names of Meira Kumar and Shinde have been floated to counter the NDA so that parties like the BSP would have no problem going against the NDA Dalit candidate.

Congress sources feel Shinde could be a better candidate due to his record in public life.

The Left parties are keen on the Opposition putting up a candidate because they see the Presidential election as an "ideological battle" and the NDA candidate as an RSS-backed man.

"For the Left, the President's election has became a battle of ideologies and a battle for safeguarding the Constitution and secular democracy. This is how we look at it," CPI National Secretary D. Raja said.

A final call on the anti-Kovind candidate will be taken at a meeting of the opposition front on June 22, Raja said.

The Left parties, which were earlier garnering support for former West Bengal Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi, are slated to meet on the morning of June 22. Among the candidates the Left is looking at is Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of the iconic B.R. Ambedkar.

But with the TRS, AIADMK and BJD swinging Kovind's way and the BSP speaking in two voices, the opposition's strength certainly looks depleted.

With Agency inputs