Reiterating his support for Pranab Mukherjee for the Presidential post, UPA ally and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar clarified he would convince party member P.A. Sangma to withdraw his nomination.
Mr. Pawar said he had no doubt about Mr. Mukherjee becoming the next President. “I know the total number of voters and I know which parties will definitely vote for him. There is not even an iota of doubt that he will not be elected President,” Mr. Pawar said.
“As against the 5,49,442 votes we need, we have 5,87,352, including the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party who have declared their support,” Mr. Pawar said.
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Asked about the opposition by Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, Mr. Pawar said, “I'm sure Mamata Di too will give it a second thought and play a positive role.”
Other NCP sources have also said Mr. Sangma does not enjoy the party's support. Even before Mr. Mukherjee's name was announced by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the NCP had made it clear it would support UPA's candidate.