The Opposition’s candidate for the Presidential elections Yashwant Sinha has said that former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has been “forced” to support Droupadi Murmu, the NDA candidate who is challenging her in July 18 elections.
Thackeray had initially extended support to Sinha after attending the opposition’s meeting last month. However, he changed his stance after being urged by 16 of the 18 MPs of his party, Shiv Sena.
The Indian Express had earlier this month reported that 12 of the Sena MPs were planning to switch to the BJP over the issue of supporting Murmu, a tribal leader.
It is believed that after losing 40 MLAs at the hands of rebel leader Eknath Shinde and the BJP, Thackeray was not in the situation to suffer another mass exodus in the party.
On Tuesday, Thackeray had said that “going by the present political atmosphere, I should not have backed her, but we are not narrow-minded.”
Speaking to reporters in Guwahati, Sinha alleged that every institution of the country is being subverted by the ruling party and its government.
“Agencies like the ED, CBI, Income Tax department and even the governor’s offices are being used to target opposition leaders, to engineer defections and topple opposition-run state governments,” he claimed.
“The ruling party has embarked on an evil design to communally polarise India’s multi-faith society, and its agenda of one nation, one party, one ruler is meant to convert democratic India into an imitator of Communist China,” he said.
Sinha said he was dismayed that NDA’s presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu has not addressed a press conference yet. “People do not know what she stands for. I have great personal regard for Droupadi Murmu, but this election is not about persons and their identities but about their commitment to Constitution,” he said.
