Next President of India: Congress pitches Meira Kumar against BJP's Draupadi Murmu

During the several rounds of discussion held by the opposition many have proposed the name of Sharad Pawar, the NCP leader.

By Vicky

Updated: Friday, May 12, 2017, 14:41 [IST]

If the BJP decides to nominate Jharkhand Governor, Draupadi Murmu as its presidential candidate, then the opposition will pitch Meira Kumar, the daughter of Babu Jagjivan Ram. The opposition has also been considering the name of Gopal Krishna Gandhi, the former West Bengal governor and grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. The next President of India will be elected in July after the term of Pranab Mukherjee ends.

Meira vs Draupadi

However if the BJP announces the name of Draupadi Murmu, then the opposition would drop Gandhi's name and pitch Meira Kumar as its candidate for the post of President of India. The opposition would however wait for the BJP led NDA to announce its candidate before it finalises it choice for the next president of India.

RSS candidate vs Gopal Gandhi

If the BJP decides to field an RSS functionary, then the opposition would nominate Gandhi for the post. In case the BJP decides to give Pranab Mukherjee another term, then the opposition would not oppose it. However the opposition would not nominate Mukherjee on its own.

Sharad Pawar still in race

During the several rounds of discussion held by the opposition many have proposed the name of Sharad Pawar, the NCP leader. Many see him as an ideal candidate. However there are caste equations and other permutation combinations that the opposition would need to consider, depending on the choice of president made by the BJP.

First tribal President of India

The BJP on the other hand is most likely to go with the candidature of Draupadi Murmu. If she is elected then she would be the first tribal President of India. The BJP has now been gathering the numbers in the electoral college to elect the next President of India. With support pouring in from various parties such as the AIADMK and the YSR Congress, the BJP would have no problem in electing a candidate of its choice.

The electoral college

No.	State/UT	MLAs	Population	Vote value	Total vote value
1	Andhra Pradesh	175	43,502,708	248	43400
2	Arunachal Pradesh	60	467,511	8	480
3	Assam	126	14,625,152	116	14,616
4	Bihar	243	42,126,236	173	42,039
5	Chhattisgarh	90	11,637,494	129	11,610
6	Delhi	70	4,065,698	58	4,060
7	Goa	40	795,120	20	800
8	Gujarat	182	26,697,475	147	26,754
9	Haryana	90	10,036,808	112	10,080
10	Himachal Pradesh	68	3,460,434	51	3468
11	Jammu and Kashmir	87	6,300,000	72	6,264
12	Jharkhand	81	14,227,133	176	14,256
13	Karnataka	224	29,299,014	131	29,344
14	Kerala	140	21,347,375	152	21,280
15	Madhya Pradesh	230	30,016,625	131	30,130
16	Maharashtra	288	50,412,235	175	50,400
17	Manipur	60	1,072,753	18	1,080
18	Meghalaya	60	1,011,699	17	1,020
19	Mizoram	40	332,390	8	320
20	Nagaland	60	516,499	9	540
21	Odisha	147	21,944,615	149	21,903
22	Puducherry	30	471,707	16	480
23	Punjab	117	13,551,060	116	13,572
24	Rajasthan	200	25,765,806	129	25,800
25	Sikkim	32	209,843	7	224
26	Tamil Nadu	234	41,199,168	176	41,184
27	Telangana	119	43,502,708	148	17612
28	Tripura	60	1,556,342	26	1,560
29	Uttar Pradesh	403	83,849,905	208	83,824
30	Uttarakhand	70	4,491,239	64	4,480
31	West Bengal	294	44,312,011	151	44,394
	Total	4,120	549,302,055		549,474