Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said Friday Opposition parties might have considered backing NDA’s presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader of the saffron party from Odisha, had the BJP held a discussion with them before fielding her. Mamata Banerjee also said that Murmu’s chances of winning the presidential poll has increased after the recent developments in Maharashtra. A sizeable chunk of the opposition votes (rebel Shiv Sena MLAs) from Maharashtra will now go to Murmu, Banerjee pointed out.
“The NDA’s numbers have got a boost after the change of guard in Maharashtra. BJP’s presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu has better chances (to win presidential polls) because of Maharashtra development. If the BJP had asked for our suggestion before announcing the name of Murmu, we could have considered it, too, bearing greater interests in mind,” Banerjee told reporters on the sidelines of a Rath Yatra programme here. “A consensus candidate is always better for the country,” she added.
Also read: BSP extends support for BJP-led NDA’s Prez candidate Droupadi Murmu
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said that she ‘will go by what the Opposition parties decide’.
Non-BJP parties, including the Congress as well as the TMC, have named former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha as the joint nominee for the presidential poll.