Next President of India: E Palanisamy to back NDA pick Ram Nath Kovind

A day after nominating Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind as NDA candidate for Presidential elections, the ruling BJP was leaving no stone unturned to consolidate support of political parties to ensure his smooth sailing to Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Tamil Nadu's ruling AIADMK faction on Wednesday announced its support for NDA Presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind. The decision was announced Chief Minister K. Palaniswami.

Palanisamy on Wednesday said,''Have decided to support NDA's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind.''

The AIADMK carries a vote share of 5.36 percent with 135 MLAs and 50 MPs. The vote of each AIADMK MP, similar to MPs from other states, is valued at 708 while each AIADMK MLA's vote is valued at 176. The AIADMK has 37 MPs in Lok Sabha and 13 in Rajya Sabha. Votes in Parliament will translate to 35,400 and stands at 23,760 from assembly with a total value pegged at 59,160 votes. This can contribute in wholesome to the NDA running short of 1.85 lakh votes to achieve the simple majority.

Meanwhile, Kovind resigned as Bihar Governor. President Pranab Mukherjee accepted his resignation and handed over responsibilities of Patna Raj Bhawan to West Bengal Governor Kesri Nath Tripathi, in addition to his own duties.

Congress's Ghulam Nabi Azad said this was not the first time that a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste has been nominated for the post of President, referring to Congress making KR Narayanan the President in 1997.

OneIndia News