Yashwant Sinha to file nomination today, shifts campaign launch to TN

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 26

The Opposition’s presidential candidate, Yashwant Sinha, will file his nomination for the July 18 election on Monday. Leaders of some parties, including TMC’s Mamata Banerjee, NCP’s Sharad Pawar and Congress’ Mallikarjun Kharge and Jairam Ramesh are expected to accompany him for the filing of the nomination.

Won’t withdraw from race

I am not withdrawing. A serious fighter never withdraws due to fear of loss. The presidential election is about much more than my personal ambition. It is about putting up resistance to forces that are threatening the Constitution and democracy. Yashwant Sinha, Opposition’s Presidential Nominee

Sinha, 84, is pressing ahead with the contest even as NDA nominee Droupadi Murmu appears to be bagging larger support. BSP chief Mayawati announced her support to Murmu on Saturday accusing the Opposition of sidelining her in recent meetings and of “caste biases.”

“I am not withdrawing. A serious fighter never withdraws due to fear of loss. The presidential election is about much more than my personal ambition, my loss or win. It is about putting up resistance to forces that are threatening the Constitution and democracy,” Sinha said.

He had earlier said the President House should no longer have “rubber stamps.”

The former NDA minister also today said that his son Jayant Sinha, a BJP MP, was free to follow his “raj dharma” by voting for the ruling party candidate as he had already announced.

“I will follow my rashtra dharma, my duty towards the nation,” said Sinha, who has had to drop his plans to launch the campaign from Jharkhand, his home state, after the ruling JMM started weighing support to Murmu.

Although the JMM is yet to take a final call on whom it will back, Sinha said he would launch his campaign starting with Chennai in Tamil Nadu on June 28.

Now it remains to be seen whether all parties that pledged support to Sinha in the June 21 meeting will turn up tomorrow at his nomination. These parties are the Congress, NCP, TMC, CPM, CPI, RSP, SP, NC, AIMIM, RJD, CPIML, AIUDF and the DMK.

On June 21, Pawar had claimed that he had the assurance of support for Sinha from the AAP, TRS, SP and RJD.

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