Congress isolated as JDU backs Kovind

Bihar CM Nitish to skip Opposition meet today

​Patna: In what could come as a big jolt to Opposition unity, the Janata Dal United (JD-U), led by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, on Wednesday confirmed that the party would support NDA's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind.

Senior party leader KC Tyagi said the party will skip Thursday’s meeting of Opposition parties. He also hoped that the Congress would also extend support to Kovind’s name. Leaders of 18 Opposition parties will meet on Thursday to discuss the probability of a joint candidate.

"We have decided to extend support to NDA's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind as his tenure as Governor had been peaceful," he said.

Earlier in the day, emerging from a meeting with Kumar, JD(U) MLA Ratnesh Sada said the CM has directed the legislators to vote for Kovind in the July 17 election.

"We are with Ram Nath Kovind. He was the Governor of Bihar and he has been chosen as presidential nominee because of this factor. The Chief Minister has told us that JD(U) will support Kovind in the upcoming election," Sada said.

The Chief Minister has already conveyed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi that JD(U) will not support the Opposition if it puts up a candidate against Kovind.

Nitish, who has broken ranks with the Opposition on several issues in the past, on Monday expressed happiness over Kovind’s candidature for the President’s post.

“In my capacity as the Bihar Chief Minister, it is a matter of happiness that our Governor has been declared as the candidate for the next president of India,” he told reporters after paying a courtesy call to Kovind at the Raj Bhavan on Monday.

Meanwhile, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad said his party will go with other Opposition parties in their choice for a presidential candidate. Lalu brushed aside questions on the JD(U) extending support to NDA's pick for the president's post.

The Congress has refused support to Kovind's candidature and said the Opposition will put up its own presidential candidate. Other important regional players - AIADMK, BJD, Telangana Rashtra Samithi, YSR Congress - have already thrown in their lot with the NDA.