Triangular contest for Vice President's post as Najma enters fray

New Delhi, July 22 (UNI) With the NDA deciding to back former Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Najma Heptullah, there will be a triangular contest for the Vice-Presidential election.

The NDA nominee will be taking on the ruling UPA-Left's Hamid Ansari and the UNPA's Rashid Masood.

The decision to field the veteran parliamentarian was taken at a NDA meeting at the residence of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, which was attended by senior BJP leaders L K Advani and Jaswant Singh and leaders of Janata Dal (United), Biju Janata Dal, Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal). Shiv Sena and Trinamool Congress which did not support the NDA-backed Independent nominee Bhairon Singh Shekhawat in the Presidential poll, were conspicuous by their absence.

Dr Heptullah will file her nomination papers tomorrow. The last date of filing the nomination for Vice-Presidential poll is August 10. MPs from both houses of Parliament form the electoral college for this election.

Asked about the rationale behind the NDA fielding its nominee although the numbers were against them, senior BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj and Vijay Kumar Malhotra conceded that the NDA did not have the numbers but the UPA had made no efforts to put up a consensus candidate.

''Such being the case, the NDA, the principal opposition party cannot afford to allow a free run to the UPA nominee,'' they said.

Dr Heptullah has been a non-political person and the NDA was impressed by the way she conducted the House as Deputy Chairperson in the past, they added.

''She is our candidate because of her capability and not because of her gender or religion,'' Ms Swaraj said while referring to the fact that all three candidates in the fray for the second highest constitutional post are Muslims.

Dr Heptullah, 67, who was a member of Rajya Sabha since 1980 from the Congress, succeeded President-elect Pratibha Patil as Deputy Chairperson of the Upper House from January 1985 to January 1986 and held the post till 2004.

She was named as head of the Indian Council of Cultural Affairs, during the NDA rule, and was considered close the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Reportedly, she also did not get along well with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and the final straw leading to her exit from the party was the denial of her renomination to the Rajya Sabha when her term ended in 2004, despite her being the Deputy Chairperson.

UNI