Sangma's decision to move SC a personal choice: BJP

With Pranab Mukherjee taking oath as the 13th President of India, the BJP has decided to ditch its allegation that the Congress leader was holding an office of profit when he filed his nomination.

With Pranab Mukherjee taking oath as the 13th President of India, the BJP has decided to ditch its allegation that the Congress leader was holding an office of profit when he filed his nomination.

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The party on Wednesday said it was PA Sangma's individual matter whether he filed an election petition before the Supreme Court challenging Mukherjee's election.

"Sangma's decision will be his personal decision. We don't want to link it with the party," BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy told reporters when asked about the party's stand.

"We have welcomed Pranab Mukherjee's presidency. The petition, if it gets filed, will be an individual issue of PA Sangma and we have no link with it. We abide by the constitution. The debate is over."

Significantly, the BJP had held a press conference at its party office weeks back, with party leader Ananth Kumar wanting to know if Mukherjee had submitted a "backdated" resignation to ISI Kolkata and whether the signatures on it were indeed his. The returning officer had however declared Mukherjee's nomination as valid.

However, Satya Pal Jain, who is in Sangma's core legal team alongside Subrahmanian Swamy, is of the BJP. Asked about Jain's involvement in Sangma's core legal strategising, Rudy said he was also a "legal man", apart from being a BJP member and was free to assist Sangma on an individual basis.

Sangma's legal team will decide on whether to move the Supreme Court within days, though sources in the team said they have almost made up their mind to exercise the legal option.