The Hindu : NDA against second term for Narayanan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 31, 2002

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NDA against second term for Narayanan

By Harish Khare

NEW DELHI MAY 30 . The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, is believed to have conveyed to the President, K.R. Narayanan, that it was the "considered view'' of the ruling National Democratic Alliance that the convention against a second term for the Rashtrapati Bhavan incumbent should be followed. In other words, the Vajpayee Government does not favour another term for Mr. Narayanan.

Mr. Vajpayee conveyed this view to Mr. Narayanan towards the end of a 45-minute interaction when he called on the President this evening at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Otherwise, the meeting was described as a "courtesy call'' during which Mr. Vajpayee briefed the President on the tense situation with Pakistan, and also shared with him perceptions of his discussions with a number of world leaders. Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister held consultations with his senior Cabinet colleagues, the Union Home Minister, L. K. Advani, the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, and the Minister of External Affairs, Jaswant Singh.

While Rashtrapati Bhavan was unwilling to add to or clarify the matter, there were enough hints from the prime ministerial aides that the ruling NDA was putting the onus on Mr. Narayanan to risk a contest, that too as the candidate of the Opposition parties.

Only two days ago, the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, had called on Mr. Narayanan to tell him that her party would be happy to support him were he to seek a second term: and, the President, according to the Congress sources, was reported to be having an "open mind'' in the matter. The other Opposition parties, particularly the two communist parties, have also canvassed a second term for Mr. Narayanan.

On the other hand, the BJP has been consistent in its stand that it is unexcited about the idea of a second term for Mr. Narayanan. The ruling party has reason to be unhappy with what it perceives to be Mr. Narayanan's penchant for presidential activism. In recent months, the BJP has not appreciated the President's expression of anguish over the communal violence in Gujarat.

The Congress and the other Opposition parties believe that Mr. Narayanan has been a wholesome constitutional presence in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, and now that doubts about his health have been mostly removed, he is entitled to a second innings.

It will be a few days before it is known whether or not the NDA strategy of talking Mr. Narayanan out of the race has succeeded. The presidential college is pretty evenly divided, with a slight advantage to the NDA; however, this advantage hinges on two key allies — the Bhujan Samaj Party and the Telugu Desam Party.

Mr. Narayanan has not yet indicated any keenness on seeking a second term. All those who have interacted with him in the matter came back with the impression that ultimately the choice of a President was best sorted out among the political parties and leaders. This is the maximum interpretation that can be given to his reported "open mind''.

In other words, the non-NDA political elements would have to put their heads together on whether they want to prevent, if they can, an NDA nominee in the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Given the split in the presidential college, the NDA may be constrained to seek a consensus with the Opposition, rather than subject the country to a factious presidential poll in these tense times.

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