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| Pratibha Patil is UPA-Left nominee for Prez poll | | |
New Delhi, Jun 14
Rajasthan Governor Pratibha Patil was today chosen the UPA-Left consensus nominee for the Presidential election after the Left parties vetoed the Congress' choice of Home Minister Shivraj Patil.
After two days of hectic consultations, the 72-year- old leader from Maharashtra emerged as the dark horse and was approved by leaders of the UPA-Left combine, including UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who met at the residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
"It is a matter of pride and a historic moment in the 60th year of our republic," said Gandhi, apparently referring to the possibility of Patil becoming the country's first woman President.
"We will have to set up a coordination committee (to ensure her victory)," she said in the presence of UPA leaders, including the Prime Minister, DMK president M Karunanidhi, RJD chief Lalu Prasad and NCP president Sharad Pawar besides Left leaders Prakash Karat, Abani Roy and A B Bardhan.
Patil, married to Devisingh Shekhawat, a Maharashtrian of Rajasthani descent, will most probably take on Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, also from Rajasthan, in the July 19 election.
The ruling coalition's choice came after feverish activities in the UPA camp, when the Left parties strongly rejected the Congress' first choice, Shivraj Patil, and insisted on the candidature of External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee whom the Congress said was "indispensable" for the government.
As the parleys continued with the mediation of Karunanidhi, names of several other Congress leaders, including Karan Singh and Sushil Kumar Shinde, cropped up. The Left is believed to have also opposed Karan Singh.
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