The selection of the Congress presidential candidate finally has zeroed in on Rajasthan Governor Pratibha Patil.
Though, at the outset we should clarify that she is better than Arjun Singh, Shivraj Patil or Pranab Mukherjee put together, it is hard not to discuss the premise on which President Abdul Kalam was not given second term.
If one recollects, the earlier President K.R. Narayanan had maintained that only if he is a consensus candidate he would willingly accept a second term. Our present incumbent has to be credited that he never aspired to be a President in the first place, nor did he aspire to a second term in the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
That truly makes Kalam the most suitable for the post because by temperament he is disinterested, and that shows in his completely unbiased decisions. If one reads even the latest surveys conducted in some of newspapers it will be clear why a decisive majority of middle-class root for him. It was too good to last.
The inability of political parties to come to a conclusion over giving Kalam a second-term stems from the fact that he has been far too modern in his outlook?for instance, suggesting two party system, which regional parties could not reconcile with. That comment of the President at the fag end of his term almost challenged the regional satraps to vote for him on national interest alone. Predictably, they did not pick up the gauntlet.
Moreover, at the beginning of the search for a new President the UPA parties made two things very clear: Kalam cannot be given a second term as there are other candidates who have to be given a chance. As if talent and abilities of the present President are of no consequence. Why the same argument did not apply to Narayanan is for the Left to explain. Second, the presidential candidate had to be well-versed with presidential duties and responsibilities, they said. Who could be better than Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to fit that bill? Well, such arguments of the UPA are only for the 15-second news channel panel discussions.
Third, as some Congressmen themselves cavil, this tokenism over first women President has huge political ramifications. All the parties in the UPA are expectedly looking towards reaping the benefits of tokenism in the next elections. But if one goes by the surveys, women are bigger supporters of Kalam than men. And if it comes to the crunch, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat'sstature, abilities and political sagacity make him the most suitable candidate. But a political class imbued in reservation politics will never understand the parable of nation-building.
