Next Lok Sabha polls last chance for Sharad Pawar: Ambedkar

Mumbai, Jul 2 (UNI) The Bharip-Bahujan Mahasangh chief Prakash Ambedkar today said the next general elections will be the last chance for Union Agriculture Minister and NCP chief Sharad Pawar to lead the country.

Speaking to select journalists at his party office near Mantralaya here, Mr Ambedkar said five non-Congress and non-BJP leaders has the chance to be the next prime minister. These leaders are Sharad Pawar of Maharashtra, Mayawati and Mulayam Singh of Uttar Pradesh, Chandarababu Naidu of Andhra Pradesh and J Jayalalitha of Tamil Nadu. These states send a sizable number of MPs to the Lok Sabha.

He said after the elections, the politics would demand that the prime minister should be from Lok Sabha and not from the upper house of Parliament. Therefore, Mr Pawar would have to contest for the Lok Sabha and should be able to command at least 25 MPs from the state.

''Our Party is not averse to take support from any other political party in the State,'' he said.

Mr Ambedkar said he plans to contest next Lok Sabha polls from Akola, his earlier constituency.

He predicted that the present Lok Sabha would be dissolved early and polls would be called for November this year.

''The Prime Minister has to stand for the Indo-US nuclear deal and face the elections rather than ditch the pact with USA,'' he added.

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