President poll: Farooq pulls out, says grateful to Didi

New Delhi, June 18

National Conference patron Farooq Abdullah today withdrew his name as the joint Opposition candidate for the July 18 presidential elections.

In a statement issued here, former J&K CM Abdullah said he was honoured that his name was proposed in the June 15 meeting of Opposition parties as a joint candidate for the President’s post.

“I am very grateful to Mamata Banerjee for proposing my name. I am also grateful to all senior leaders who have offered to support me. However, I had taken a few days to discuss this unexpected development with my family and senior colleagues. I have a lot more active politics ahead of me and look forward to making a positive contribution in the service of J&K and the country. I will, therefore, like to respectfully withdraw my name from consideration for the presidential candidate and look forward to supporting the joint Opposition consensus candidate,” he said in a statement released by his party.

Abdullah also said he was deeply touched by the support he had received by being proposed to run for the highest office in the country. “I believe that J&K is passing through a critical juncture and my efforts are required to help navigate these uncertain times,” said Abdullah, whose withdrawal from the race comes a day after Shiv Sena said names of Farooq and Gopalkrishna Gandhi were regular and often cropped up during discussions at the time of presidential elections, but lacked the heft and the personality to make the presidential election a tightly fought race.

Sena also argued that the Opposition needed to be serious about the July 18 election because if fails to field a strong candidate for the presidential post, people would ask how it would find a capable PM in 2024. Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Gopalkrishna Gandhi is, however, still in the race and it remains to be seen whether all Opposition parties can agree on his name.

Further parleys are expected beginning this evening when Pawar again arrives in Delhi to take the discussions forward. The Opposition has said it will finalise a common candidate for the election by June 21. — TNS

J&K needs me more

I believe that J&K is passing through a critical juncture and my efforts are required to help navigate through uncertain times. — Farooq Abdullah, NC patron