‘I stand for democracy, my rival for those who want it destroyed’: Yashwant Sinha

Ahead of the Presidential polls on Monday (July 18), Opposition’s presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha on Sunday appealed to all political parties to vote for him, while urging them to see the polls not as a war of identities, but of ideologies.

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Sinha will be contesting the polls against NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu.

In a statement that he shared on Twitter, Sinha, who has held ministerial portfolios in the Union government when the BJP was in power, said he represents to Constitution while his ‘rival’ stands for those who wants to change it.

“As I have stressed in all my meetings and media interactions, this election is not about the identities of the two candidates in the fray but about the ideologies and ideas they represent. My ideology is the Constitution of India. My rival candidate represents those forces whose ideology and agenda, let’s make no mistake, is to change the Constitution,” he wrote.

“I stand for safeguarding India’s democratic system. My rival candidate is supported by those who are mounting daily attacks on democracy. I stand for protecting secularism, a Preambular pillar of our Constitution, which is exemplified by India’s age-old Ganga-Jamuni heritage of unity in diversity. My rival candidate belongs to a party that has made no secret of its resolve to destroy this pillar and establish majoritarian supremacy,” he said without naming Murmu anywhere in the statement.

Sinha said while he represents the ‘politics of consensus and cooperation,’ his rival is backed by a party that indulges in ‘politics of confrontation and conflict.’

My appeal to all members of the electoral college ahead of the Presidential election tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/27JVgwC8ZN

— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) July 17, 2022

 “Finally, I stand for ONE NATION, MANY PARTIES, COLLECTIVE LEADERSHIP. My rival, again make no mistake will be under the control of those whose aim is to convert democratic India into an imitator of Communist China – ONE NATION, ONE PARTY, ONE SUPREME LEADER. Must this not be stopped? Yes, it must be. Only you can stop it,” he wrote.

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He also urged MPs and MLAs not be afraid of any ‘party whip’ to vote in favour of a particular candidate as the same defeats the entire purpose of the secret ballot.

Making a special appeal to voters in the BJP camp he said as a former member of the party he can vouch that the BJP once led by “Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani is dead and gone.”

“Under the present sole leader, it’s an altogether different – and degraded – party…This election is your last chance to introduce much-needed course-correction in the BJP,” he said.

On Saturday, Sinha in a video message had make a similar appeal.

इस साल राष्ट्रपति चुनाव दो व्यक्तियों के बीच नहीं, बल्कि दो विचारधाराओं के बीच का चुनाव है। केवल एक पक्ष हमारे संविधान में निहित प्रावधानों और मूल्यों की रक्षा करना चाहता है। मैं सभी सांसदों और विधायकों से इस बार संविधान और उनकी अंतरात्मा की आवाज़ पर वोट करने की अपील करता हूं। pic.twitter.com/0Zs1F5qJic

— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) July 16, 2022

“Our Constitution and its values are in danger today. This presidential election will determine the future of the country. I thereby appeal all the voters – MPs and MLAs – that they exercise their constitutional right. And if they vote me, I promise I will take every step to protect the Constitution,” he said.

Also read: Yashwant Sinha is presidential candidate in largely symbolic fight

The counting of the votes for the presidential election will take place on July 21.