Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, June 21: Yashwant Sinha, a former union minister, has been recommended as a joint candidate by the opposition parties, according to the sources.
The opposition has been unable to name a candidate since three likely candidates, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar, National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah, and Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Gopalkrishna Gandhi have all expressed interest but not consented to run.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to finalise its nominee at its parliamentary board meeting today, according to PTI, citing sources. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to participate virtually at the meeting.
Former bureaucrat yashwant Sinha joined West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress last year after serving as a minister in BJP governments. The speculation over his probable presidential candidacy began this morning, when he tweeted that he was “stepping aside” from the Trinamool to work towards opposition unity. He thanked Ms Banerjee in that tweet.
I am grateful to Mamataji for the honour and prestige she bestowed on me in the TMC. Now a time has come when for a larger national cause I must step aside from the party to work for greater opposition unity. I am sure she approves of the step.
— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) June 21, 2022
