(Hastily responds) I think that is a misnomer. We have been supporting governments earlier also. You should not forget that we supported the V P Singh government in 1989. We supported the United Front government in 1996-1998. We played a very important role in that government. In fact, in the formation and running of that government we played a more important role, although it survived much shorter.

Now four years of the UPA government. Here is the Congress party's leadership, then, (in the 1996 United Front government) along with regional and anti-Congress parties, we had a major role too in the formation and running of the government.

In the UPA, power is with other bourgeois parties. We don't say make so and so minister, make so and so governor, or make certain appointments. We don't interfere. In the states where our party is ruling, we do say consult our chief minister when the governor is appointed.

But you did have your say when the President and Vice-President were appointed.

No, no, the appointment of the President is different. It is not an executive post.

We wanted wider support. The Congress party selected the candidate, we didn't. We said we will support your choice.

But Vice-President Hamid Ansari was your choice.

For the Vice-President's post, we said it should not be from the Congress. Both posts should not go to the Congress. We said we will initiate the choice but we will not select anybody from the Left. We don't believe that the President or Vice-President's post should be given to the Left. We never asked for it.

Image: President Pratibha Patil with West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya. Photograph: STR/AFP/Getty Images

Also see: Race to Rashtrapati Bhavan

Back

|

Next