Former union minister Yashwant Sinha on Tuesday morning posted a tweet that could intensify the speculation of him being considered as the opposition's candidate for the July 18 presidential election. “I am grateful to Mamata ji for the honour and prestige she bestowed on me in the TMC. Now a time has come when for a larger national cause I must step aside from the party to work for greater opposition unity. I am sure she approves of the step,” the 84-year-old leader tweeted.
On being asked by HT amid the buzz, Sinha said he did not want to go beyond his tweet. Sources, however, have suggested that he is likely to be declared as the opposition's pick.
Yashwant Sinha, who has served as India's finance and foreign minister, has been the vice president of the Trinamool Congress. He had quit the BJP in 2018.
His tweet comes as opposition leaders hold a meeting at the residence of Sharad Pawar on Tuesday to hold discussions about the presidential polls, a day after West Bengal's ex governor and Mahatma Gandhi's grandson, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, refused to be nominated for the post. Earlier, Pawar and National Conference patriarch Farooq Abdullah had turned down the offers.
Reports suggest that Sinha’s name was discussed by the opposition leaders on Monday.
{{/usCountry}}Reports suggest that Sinha’s name was discussed by the opposition leaders on Monday.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, this is the second opposition meeting in a week on the agenda. Last week, Mamata Banerjee was in Delhi to hold the talks after inviting 22 non-BJP leaders.
Sharad Pawar's NCP, Trinamool Congress and other opposition parties held the meeting on June 15 to build a consensus on fielding a joint candidate against the NDA in the presidential election.
At Tuesday's meeting, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has also been invited. "NCP chief Sharad Pawar invited Barrister Asaduddin Owaisi for a meeting to discuss the upcoming presidential elections. Mr Owaisi thanked Mr Pawar for the kind invitation and has deputed Aurangabad MP Mr Imtiaz jaleel to represent AIMIM in the meeting," the AIMIM said in a statement.
Last week, Owaisi had said that he had not got an invite as also cited the Congress's attendance as a reason to skip the meeting.
(With inputs from PTI)