Presidential polls: Congress now wants a People's President'

New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday changed its stance on fielding a Dalit candidate for the post of President of India and is now mulling over the idea of a “people’s President”. The top  names under consideration is of M.S. Swaminathan, the architect of the green revolution, and the other is that of nuclear scientist Anil Kakodkar.

Though the odds are heavily in favour of the BJP’s candidate, Ram Nath Kovind, the Congress and other Opposition parties feel that an open field cannot be given to the BJP and an ideological fight needs to be put up.

Mr Swaminathan’s name was earlier proposed by NDA ally Shiv Sena, which on Tuesday decided to back the BJP’s nominee.

The Congress is keen on playing the farmer card to counter the BJP’s Dalit card at a time when there has been countrywide farmers’ unrest.

The Congress feels that in 2007, when the BJP fielded Bhairon Singh Shekhawat against their candidate, Pratibha Patil, the Opposition’s choice was not termed anti-women. So if the Opposition now fields a non-Dalit, it cannot be termed anti-Dalit.

This is the argument the Congress plans to make at the Opposition parties’ meeting on June 22. If the Opposition parties do not insist, the Congress is not keen on fielding the Dalit candidates it had shortlisted — former Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar and former home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde. However, the Congress’ plan will first have to be accepted by other parties. Left parties are keen to field a Dalit candidate, as they think it would make a political statement.

In 2002, when it was certain Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the BJP’s candidate, would win, the Left parties had put up Captain Lakshmi Sehgal.