National
Najma Heptullah keen on post of Vice-President?
By Our Special Correspondent
KOLKATA, DEC. 6. The Deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha and senior Congress functionary, Ms. Najma Heptullah, is believed to have sought the support of the Communists in her bid to contest for the office of the Vice-President in May.
Ms. Heptullah met the West Bengal's former Chief Minister, Mr. Jyoti Basu, in New Delhi recently and is said to have dropped broad hints to him to exercise influence over the Communist Party of India (Marxist) to support her candidature. Ms. Heptullah is believed to be nurturing a wish to see herself as the Vice-President, if not President, over the past several years.
According to highly placed sources in both the Congress and the CPI(M), Ms. Heptullah, who has an excellent rapport with political leaders of all hues, approached Mr. Basu in Banga Bhaban when the latter was in New Delhi in connection with the CPI(M)'s politburo meeting. She had conveyed to Mr. Basu her wish to contest for the country's top post.
The sources said Ms. Heptullah had a reason to hurry to Mr. Basu. She had a powerful rival from within the Congress for the office of Vice-President in Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, member of the AICC working committee. Mr. Mukherjee's equations with the Communists, especially the CPI(M)'s senior leaders, are fine and in case he decided to contest the Presidential poll, he would have no difficulty in garnering their support.
Ms. Heptullah or Mr. Mukherjee, the possibility of the CPI(M) and the Congress coming together during the Presidential poll brightened considerably over the past few days, courtesy of Mr. Somnath Chatterjee, leader of the CPI(M) in Parliament. Mr. Chatterjee created quite a stir in the country's political circles when he assembled apparent political rivals such as the Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, the Samajwadi Party chief, Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav, the NCP leader, Mr. Sharad Pawar, and Mr. Jyoti Basu, among others over a dinner at his residence. The informal meet signalled the emergence of a new relationship which has become essential considering the way the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has succeeded in keeping the ruling NDA together. Meanwhile, Mr. Basu's name has started figuring in the list of candidates for the office of President. Those Congress leaders, known for their Left-of Centre position, have begun a whisper campaign in political circles suggesting Mr. Basu as the consensus nominee. Some of them had even sounded Mr. Somnath Chatterjee and the other politburo members on the feasibility of such a proposal.
It is well-known that a majority of the CPI(M) politburo had vetoed Mr. Basu's suggestion to participate in the Central Government in 1986. The same set of leaders now have no problem with the concept. Chances are, they would not throw a spanner in Opposition's works to nominate Mr. Basu.
But, according to sources, Mr. Basu has firmly said `no' to the idea. ``Am I insane to accept this proposal? What's my age now? I am 88-years-old. The Presidential or any other official job is not for me anymore,'' he is said to have commented when a party leader tried to find out whether he was agreeable to the idea.
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