Democracy stands ruined in the country, says Yashwant Sinha in Ranchi

Yashwant Sinha arrived in Ranchi to seek the support of legislators and parliamentarians for his candidature.

Ranchi:Yashwant Sinha, the joint nominee of non-BJP parties for the presidential polls, was in Ranchi on Saturday to seek the support of legislators and parliamentarians over his candidature. Addressing the media, Sinha urged people to "listen to their conscience" while voting. He also commented on the recent changes made in the parliamentary proceedings, stating that democracy is "indeed nearing its end".

"When I started campaigning (for presidential poll) last month I had said that democracy is in danger. But now when I am concluding the campaign today, I can say that democracy stands ruined in the country," he said. Sinha went on to say that this election is a mission and a fight for identity. However, he refrained from commenting on NDA's presidential nominee Draupadi Murmu. Earlier this week, Sinha met AICC's Jharkhand in-charge Avinash Pande and Thakur in Delhi and discussed strategies for the upcoming election on July 18. According to Congress sources, he is also expected to meet the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Executive President and Chief Minister Hemant Soren during the day.

The meeting would be interesting since the JMM, which runs a coalition government with the Congress and RJD, has already pledged its support to NDA presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu. The party had initially backed Sinha, only to change its decision later after receiving flak from the tribal community to which both Soren and Murmu belong.

In the 81-member Jharkhand assembly, the ruling JMM-Congress-RJD alliance has a combined strength of 48 MLAs. The BJP has 26 legislators, including Babulal Marandi, the former JVM-P chief who joined the saffron camp after the 2019 assembly elections. The saffron party also has 11 Lok Sabha and three Rajya Sabha MPs. The JMM, the Congress, and the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) have one parliamentarian each in the Lower House. The ruling JMM has two MPs in Rajya Sabha and the Congress has one.