BJP U-turn adds twist to Prez poll

U-TURN: NDA did a quick turnaround, saying they will back Kalam if there is consensus around him.

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Keywords: A P J Abdul Kalam, Rashtrapati Bhavan

New Delhi: The battle for presidency is becoming more and more intriguing every day.

Twenty-four hours after nominating Bhairon Singh Shekhawat as their nominee for the President's post, NDA leaders themselves are now making a U-turn.

"If Kalam is the consensus choice, then we will support him," BJP president Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday. "Bhairon Singh Shekhawat has himself said if Kalam is the consensus candidate, then he will withdraw from the race. We welcome this statement,” Rajnath Singh said.

So what's changed in the interim? It all began with the Third Front pitching in for Kalam. "We appreciate that Shekhawat ji himself offered to withdraw if Kalam contests, because he thinks Kalam is the best choice,” Mamata pointed out.

Then Shekhawat himself expressed his desire to withdraw in Kalam's favour. The question being posed by many within the NDA now is why didn't the BJP pursue Kalam's case since he was the party's chosen one from the very beginning.

"We wanted Kalam from the beginning," Trinamool Congress President, Mamata Banerjee, says. "If there is consensus on Kalam, then we will support him. Otherwise Shekhawat will contest," Sushma Swaraj, NDA spokesperson, later clarified.

In the end, it's turned out to be a campaign which the NDA would want to forget in a hurry. They wanted to expose the differences within the UPA. But on the contrary what they have ended up doing is bringing out their own differences in the open