New Delhi: The Congress has made Meira Kumar a "scapegoat" by fielding her as the opposition's presidential candidate, the BJP on Thursday said and questioned why the party did not nominate her when it was in a position to get her elected to the highest office.
"When the Congress had the opportunity to elect a Dalit president when they were in power they did not find Meira Kumar suitable. But when the defeat of the opposition candidate is certain they have fielded her as a scapegoat.
"This clearly shows that it has no commitment to elect leaders from marginalised sections to high offices and had decided to field her purely done as a token exercise," BJP spokesperson G V L Narsimha Rao said.
The NDA has chosen Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit leader from the BJP, as its candidate and his victory is almost a foregone conclusion as the ruling bloc enjoys a comfortable majority in the electoral college with the support of parties like the AIADMK, the TRS and the JD(U).
Kumar, a former diplomat and daughter of the late Dalit icon Jagjivan Ram, was the unanimous choice of the 17 opposition parties at a meeting today.
