Know your President Candidate…
Caste is the ‘big elephant’ in every Indian election. The presidential election, however, remained unperturbed by classicism until 2017 when both the NDA as well as the UPA decided to nominate their ‘Dalit’ candidates for the president post. The presidential elections of 2017 reveal that Indian fpolitics thrives on ‘caste’ system. Every party plays on social insecurities by projecting candidates from oppressed communities, in the hopes to win their votes. The sad truth is that even the most important position in India—the Constitution head of the country is not untouched by social prejudices.
NDA nominated former governor of Bihar Ram Nath Kovind as their presidential candidate whereas the UPA project former Lok Sabha speaker Ms. Meira Kumar as their candidate. Though Kovind, who has filed three sets of nomination today, claimed that ever since he became a governor, he stopped seeing himself as an associate of any political party. Likewise, as a president, he’ll try to maintain the dignity of this post. Meira Kumar, who was nominated by Sonia Gandhi, thanked everyone for their unconditional support.
For those who don’t know about the next President of India, here’s all that you need to know about Meira Kumar and Ram Nath Kovind.
Who’s Meira Kumar?
Meira Kumar, who hails from Bihar, is a five-time Member of Parliament. She joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1973 and later became the first woman speaker of the Lok Sabha. After defeating local political champs like Paswan and Mayawati, Meera got elected from Bijnor seat in UP.
Being the daughter of former deputy PM Jagjivan Ram, Meira Kumar had a close association with Indian politics. She served as the cabinet minister in social justice and empowerment ministry under UPA government. Her soft-spoken nature and pro-woman image make her a suitable candidate for the president’s post.
Who is Ram Nath Kovind?
Ram Nath Kovind, a former lawyer, and spokesperson of the NDA was elected member of Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh in 1994. His tenure as a Rajya Sabha member lasted for 12 years. An advocate for minority rights, Ram Nath Kovind served as the member of Parliamentary Committee for Welfare of Scheduled castes, social justice & empowerment, home affairs, law and justice & energy resources.
As a governor of Bihar, he’s famous for his organizational skills and social campaigns. As a governor, he had done exemplary work in Bihar. A commerce graduate from Kanpur University, he had served at the Delhi high court and Supreme Court in the 1980s. Hailing from a humble background, he has always been a crusader for minority rights.
He led the Dalit Morcha and All-India Koli Samaj. As an advocate, he provided free legal aid to needy girls, women, poor and SC/ST citizens. He was also a board member of Dr. BR Ambedkar University, Lucknow, and Institute of Management, Kolkata.
Anyone of these could be the next president of India. If you see at their works and qualifications, both the candidates deserve this post. Nonetheless, one can’t deny that they weren’t elected on the basis of their qualities, but because of their social backgrounds and surnames—a sad truth that reflects the harsh political mentality in present time.
