Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said today that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had told him that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to know the Opposition's opinions on the Presidential poll.
The comment came hours ahead of the Opposition's big meeting in the national capital called by Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Mr Kharge also asked if the government will accept if the Opposition parties propose a "unanimous, non-controversial" candidate's name.
"I spoke to Rajnath Singh, he said that the PM wants to know our opinions, I asked what their proposal is, who the candidates are... he didn't say to be in touch. If we put forward a unanimous non-controversial name, will the government accept it?" Mr Kharge told news agency ANI.
Ms Banerjee had invited chiefs of 22 political parties to the meeting in Delhi to discuss a united fight against the BJP and its allies in the election for a new President.
But as the countdown for the meeting began, several parties made it clear that they will stay away. While some chose to skip the meeting in their attempt to be equidistant from the Congress and the BJP, others cited the presence of the Congress for their decision.
The Congress has chosen to look beyond their animosity with the Trinamool in Bengal and agreed to join the meeting. The Left too has said they will attend the meeting.
Among those who have opted out, the most prominent is the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) led by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao. Others are the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP, the Shiromani Akali Dal, Aam Aadmi Party and Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM.
