Though the Opposition had seen this coming given the Bihar chief minister initial reaction to Kovind's candidature when he said he was "personally happy" at the selection, it did not hurt any less when the news broke. More so, since the JDU did exactly what the BJP had done while announcing the candidate - it spoke to the non-NDA parties through the media.
Through the media, the Opposition also learnt that the JDU would stay away from its meeting on Thursday to finalise a strategy for the presidential election. "Why did the JDU announce this today, a day before our meeting? Is it to pre-empt us?" CPI leader D. Raja asked.
The explanation given by some JDU members, who later got in touch with Opposition leaders, is that the Narendra Modi government has assured Nitish financial aid to tide over the revenue loss Bihar is facing because of its prohibition policy. The financial situation is likely to become more precarious after the GST rollout from July 1.
On February 10, Nitish had had made a strong pitch for Opposition unity at an event in Delhi to release a book by senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram in the presence of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. "The need of the hour is Opposition unity," Nitish had told the packed house and added for good measure: "Why should they (the ruling BJP) set the agenda, why can't Rahul set the agenda?"
Before heading to the book-release programme, Nitish had met CPI and CPM leaders and stressed the need for a joint strategy on the presidential elections.
This made Nitish's decision to pull out from the Opposition efforts to put up a fight for the President's post all the more significant, though JDU leaders sought to impress on other parties that this was a one-time move and not too much ought to be read into it.
Despite the body blow, Thursday's meeting is on schedule and as of Wednesday, four names, all Dalits, were under consideration - that of former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, former Union minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, B.R. Ambedkar's grandson and former MP Prakash Ambedkar, and Bhalchandra Mungekar, a former Planning Commission member and till recently a Rajya Sabha MP. Meira met Sonia Gandhi today.
With the government trying to get dithering parties to vote for Kovind, the Opposition is keeping its fingers crossed, praying that none among the other 16 parties that attended Congress president Sonia's lunch last month will jump ship.
The JDU's decision is the third blow the Opposition has had to take on its chin since the announcement of Kovind's candidature. The choice of a Dalit as the official nominee has, in any case, narrowed the Opposition's options, particularly because BSP leader Mayawati made her support conditional on the candidate being from the marginalised community.
The first blow came from the BJD, even though the party has never been part of the combined Opposition inside and outside Parliament. However, some Opposition parties had been in touch with Odisha chief minister and BJD boss Naveen Patnaik amid some indications he could chart a different course. But this hope was dashed on Monday when he extended support to Kovind.
Then came the Shiv Sena's announcement of support on Tuesday even as the Opposition was scrambling for a Maharashtrian Dalit to take on Kovind with an eye on the petulant NDA ally. Despite the Sena's decision, that hope is evidently still being nurtured if the Opposition's shortlist of four is any indication: three of them are from Maharashtra.
On Wednesday, the AIADMK (Amma), led by Tamil Nadu chief minister K. Palaniswami, announced its support for Kovind, PTI reported.
Ahead of today's meeting, the two Left parties are likely to meet separately to forge a common strategy as they have always been committed to a contest. "There has been a contest in all presidential polls, except in 1977. It is not about the character of the candidate, it's a political fight. In the background of the current situation where the Constitution is under attack, the President should be someone who safeguards the Constitution, not someone who facilitates its undermining," CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said.
The National Federation of Indian Women appealed to the electoral college that elects the President to vote for a person who will uphold constitutional values.
"India is witnessing the systematic undermining of constitutional guarantees. Equality, the right to freedom of expression and choice, discrimination and victimisation of minorities, Dalits, Adivasis and women, are increasing both conceptually and in cascading acts of violence. The country is now ruled by fear," the federation said. It warned of a threat to change the Constitution itself to turn it into a "tool of oppression and exclusion".