Rajnath speaks to key Oppn leaders as BJP eyes consensus presidential candidate

The BJP on Wednesday began the consultation exercise on evolving a consensus name for the presidential polls with senior party leader Rajnath Singh speaking to several key opposition leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Mamata Banerjee, and Akhilesh Yadav, sources said on Wednesday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has authorized Singh and the party's chief J P Nadda to consult with other parties for building consensus on a presidential candidate.

Singh made the calls to Kharge, Banerjee, and Yadav besides some other leaders on a day when leaders of 17 opposition parties met here to build a consensus on a joint opposition candidate.

The sources said opposition leaders asked Singh about the BJP-led NDA's nominee for the presidential election.

During the meeting convened by Banerjee, at least two more names emerged -- National Conference( NC) supremo Farooq Abdullah and Gopalkrishna Gandhi, after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar declined to be a candidate.

The election for the president will be held on July 18, while the nomination process began on Wednesday. Incumbent Ram Nath Kovind's term ends on July 24.