The selection of Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind as NDA nominee for the Presidential poll is seen as a political statement that could help the BJP garner electoral support. There is serious reservation among the Congress, Left parties, Trinamool Congress and some others over the sudden announcement of the name by BJP President Amit Shah while everyone was told that an effort was on to find a consensus candidate. A sense of deceit is palpable among sections of the Opposition, and even among parties like the Shiv Sena that is part of the NDA.
Clearly, it could be seen that political considerations dominated this selection. Kovind is a Dalit. It is obvious that by merely nominating a Dalit to the highest position of the Union, it does not definitely bring about a change in the miserable existence of the scheduled castes across India.
The misery that one sees in scheduled caste villages is difficult to explain to someone who has not undergone the pain of that kind of a life. Admittedly, this move will garner political support but when one sees the background of Kovind, it is obvious he is not a party to any suffering. Although born in a Dalit family, his two terms in Rajya Sabha, a successful run in the legal field and the current position of Governor of Bihar are all clear indications of a socially benefited individual.
This decision must have been influenced probably by his RSS background. It must be mentioned that the convictions and beliefs of a person need not stand in his way if he is considered efficient. At a national level, Kovind has never shown any spark of efficiency that would fetch him this kind of recognition.
While the Congress, Left and Trinamool are most likely to oppose the candidature, NDA partner Shiv Sena remaining non-committal till the time of writing this editorial speaks volumes. Meanwhile, Mayawati has stated that nominating a Dalit has been a positive stand by the NDA while TRS of Telangana and both factions of AIADMK have supported Kovind.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has already met his Governor to congratulate him but has clarified that his party’s stand will be stated after due deliberations. This apart, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Goa and Kashmir already are BJP ruled, so the support is obvious.
On the other hand, media reports claiming that first the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and second the Prime Minister speaking to BJD President Naveen Patnaik seems to have clinched the deal in favour of Kovind. Support to the NDA candidate by the BJD may prove costly to the regional party in the near future.
With many anti Orissa issues raising their heads continuously, the BJD was seen as being on a war path against the BJP in the state. Issues such as Mahanadi, Polavaram, reduction in Central assistance to most programmes and utter neglect of very many basic demands of the state could have worked as good ammunition for the BJD in 2019.
However, if the state party decides to support the NDA candidate without a whimper, the BJP will have its path cut clear for the next elections.
