Shiv Sena suggests agri expert, 91-year-old MS Swaminathan’s name for President

After first pitching Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat as the country’s next president, the Shiv Sena has now suggested MS Swaminathan, known for steering India’s Green Revolution programme, as its preference for the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) presidential candidate.

Shiv Sena Member of Parliament (MP) from Rajya Sabha, Sanjay Raut, on Friday told the media:, “The Shiv Sena’s first preference for the NDA’s presidential candidate is RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat. But if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is opposed to Bhagwat’s candidature, then it should declare green revolution expert MS Swaminathan as the presidential candidate.”

MS Swaminathan is a geneticist and an international administrator. He is referred to as the ‘Indian Father of the Green Revolution’ for his leadership in the development of high-yielding varieties of wheat in the country.

Read: BJP president Amit Shah in Mumbai from today, will meet Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday

Incidentally, BJP chief Amit Shah, who is on a three-day visit to the city, will meet Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday morning, likely to seek his party’s support for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate.

Voting for the presidential election is scheduled on July 17, while the counting will take place on July 20, four days before the term of current President Pranab Mukherjee ends.

The Sena suggested Bhagwat’s name twice , trying to embarrass the BJP by saying only a president like him can take the country towards the direction of a Hindu nation,ensure that the Ram Temple is built, and a uniform civil code is put into force. Bhagwat, however, ruled himself out.

With 18 MPs and 63 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), the Shiv Sena has 25,893 votes with the party for the election, as the electoral college for the presidential election includes 708 points for every MP and 175 for every legislator from Maharashtra.