'We need a thinking, speaking President; not rubber stamp'
Thiruvananthapuram: Yashwant Sinha, the candidate of joint Opposition nominee in the presidential election, on Wednesday said a "thinking and speaking" person should be the resident of Rashtrapati Bhavan and not a rubber stamp.
Criticising the presentation of nomination papers of NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sinha said he presented his papers by himself.
"India needs a Rashtrapati who serves as the impartial custodian of the Constitution and not one who acts as a rubber stamp for the government. The President must have a mind of his/her own and use it conscientiously, without fear or favour, whenever the executive or other institutions of the Republic deviate from the Constitutional principles. It is my solemn assurance to the people of India that I shall serve as a President worthy of the lofty vision of the makers of the Constitution," Sinha told a meet-the-press programme organised by the Kerala Union of Working Journalists and Kesari Journalists Trust here.
He was in Kerala as part of his campaign to seek support of the leaders and legislators of the ruling LDF and Opposition UDF.
"I am assured by both these formations that they will support me in this election and thereby Kerala becomes one state in the country when the votes cast in the presidential election will be 100 per cent in favour of one candidate and that is me," Sinha said. Dismissing the concerns of those who believe that numbers were not in his favour to win the polls, he claimed that it was a developing situation and "you will see a lot of changes between now and 18th of July" -- the day when voting takes place.
Asked whether he would be able to get the support of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which is ruling his home state, in the election, Sinha said his candidature was decided in a meeting attended by the representatives of the JMM. He expressed confidence that JMM will support him despite the feeling that it may not stand with him because of the certain identity of the ruling party candidate. "I am quite confident that they will ultimately be in my support," Sinha said.
