Droupadi Murmu files nomination papers for presidential election

Seeks support from Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar and Mamata Banerjee

New Delhi, June 24 (PTI): The BJP-led NDA’s nominee Droupadi Murmu on Friday filed her nomination papers for the July 18 presidential election, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi handing over the set of papers to Returning Officer P C Mody.

Murmu was also accompanied by union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari and Piyush Goyal, BJP president J P Nadda and several chief ministers including Yogi Adityanath, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Manohar Lal Khattar, B S Bommai, Bhupendra Patel, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Pushkar Singh Dhami, Pramod Sawant and N Biren Singh.

Besides the NDA leaders, YSR Congress’ V Vijaysai Reddy and BJD leader Sasmit Patra, who are not part of the alliance, were also in Parliament to back her nomination.

AIADMK leader O Paneerselvam and M Thambidurai, JD-U’s Rajiv Ranjan Singh also reached Parliament early.

Every set of nomination has to have 50 proposers and 50 seconders among elected representatives.

Murmu, if elected, will be the first tribal president and the second woman in the post. She will also be the youngest president ever, second only to N Sanjeeva Reddy, who was a few days elder to her when he became the President.

Calls up key opposition leaders

Murmu on Friday called up some key opposition leaders, including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, NCP’s Sharad Pawar and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and sought their support for her candidature.

Sources said she called them up personally and spoke to them before filing her nomination for the July 18 presidential election.

All the three leaders expressed their best wishes to her, sources said.