The All India N.R. Congress has extended support to the National Democratic Alliance candidate, Ram Nath Kovind, who is the Bihar Governor, for Presidential poll.
Hours after national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party Amit Shah announced Mr. Kovind’s candidature, AINRC founder and former Chief Minister N. Rangasamy announced the decision to support the NDA nominee.
The AINRC with eight legislators and a Member of Parliament carries a vote value of 836.
The value of vote of each legislator in the Union Territory has been put at 16 and that of the Member of Parliament at 708 as per the population data of 1976.
Top sources in AINRC and local unit of Bharatiya Janata Party told The Hindu that leader of both the parties had been in touch over the last few weeks on the presidential election.
Although it was not yet clear whether there would be an election after Mr. Kovind was picked up for the race, the decision of AINRC would be of political relevance in the Union Territory.
The party, after the electoral debacle in the last Assembly elections, had been increasingly trying to draw closer to the Centre.
A few of the legislators of the party had openly backed Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi in her battle with the ruling Congress on the Centac admission issue for postgraduate medical seats in private college and deemed universities.
However, in case of an election, the biggest test before the party would be to keep its flock together as deep divisions within its legislative wing had emerged in the recent past.
At least four legislators are believed to be not in good terms with the top leadership.
One of the legislators — T.P.R. Selvame — had caused enough embarrassment on more than one occasion in the just concluded Assembly session.
The legislator refused to toe the party line in the Legislative Assembly and was more often supported the stand of the ruling Congress.
Amit Shah coming
Sources in BJP said party national president Amit Shah is likely to make a two-day visit to Puducherry as part of his 95-day national tour to take stock of the party’s organisational structure.
