E-Paper
Ahead of prez polls, posters calling Mamata 'anti-tribal' comes up in Bengal
Murmu is up against former union minister Yashwant Sinha, an ex-member of the BJP and Bengal's ruling Triamool Congress who was chosen by a joint opposition fronted by Mamata Banerjee.
Posters denouncing Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee as being 'anti-tribal' sprouted across the state Saturday, news agency ANI said, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) steps up attacks on its rival ahead of Monday's presidential election.
The BJP has fielded ex-Jharkhand governor Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader from Odisha, as its candidate - she is featured on the posters, as is prime minister Narendra Modi. Murmu is up against former union minister Yashwant Sinha, an ex-member of the BJP and Bengal's ruling Triamool Congress who was chosen by a joint opposition fronted by Mamata Banerjee.
Also read | ‘Respect Droupadi Murmu but will vote for Yashwant Sinha: AAP on Prez poll
Droupadi Murmu is widely expected to record a comfortable win, having (on paper) already secured over 60 per cent of the votes of lawmakers across India. She will become the first member of a tribal community (only the second woman) to hold the august office.
The Murmu v Sinha contest has seen a predictable war of words between the two camps; this week the BJP lashed out at Congress leader Ajoy Kumar's 'evil philosophy' comment.
Apart from the BJP, Murmu will have support from the Biju Janata Dal of her hometown Odisha and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha from Jharkhand, which is a Congress ally.
Also read | Presidential polls: Why did Yashwant Sinha cancel his Mumbai visit?
On the other side, on Saturday Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party said it would back Sinha. "We respect Droupadi Murmu but the AAP will support the opposition candidate, Yashwant Sinha," Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said after his party's political advisory committee met.
Mamata Banerjee this week said Murmu could have been a true consenus candidate - with support across the political spectrum - had the BJP been open about its plans.
India's lawmakers will vote for the country's next president on Monday, with results due within three days. The incumbent, Ram Nath Kovind, will step down July 24.
