Hyderabad:
Presidential hopeful PA Sangma is busy trying to rally support among political parties for his contest against Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. As part of his campaign, Mr Sangma planned to meet Andhra Pradesh leader Jagan Mohan Reddy, who is in jail.
Mr Reddy is in a jail near Hyderabad for alleged corruption. His imprisonment created a huge sympathy wave in recently held elections in Andhra Pradesh. His party, the YSR Congress, won 15 of 18 assembly seats; it also won the Lok Sabha seat from Nellore.
Mr Sangma also met Mr Reddy's mother, Vijayamma, who campaigned extensively after her son was arrested, urging people to recognise that he was being punished by the ruling Congress for his growing popularity.
Mr Reddy, a court said today, will stay in jail till July 4. The 39-year-old politician participated in the hearing via video-conference. His trip to court was cancelled for security reasons.
Mr Sangma is the official candidate of the BJP and the parties headed by chief ministers Jayalalithaa and Navin Patnaik. He currently stands to win about 30% of the vote in the election for President, scheduled for July 19.
Mr Mukherjee, on the other hand, who is the candidate of the UPA, is looking at about 54% of the vote, with Opposition parties like the Janata Dal (United) and the Shiv Sena abandoning their coalition, the NDA, to support him.