GUWAHATI, July 5 - Opposition candidate for the Presidential polls, Meira Kumar, today appealed to all the MPs and MLAs to cast their votes as per their conscience and said that she is waging a battle of ideologies where she will fight to the last.
Addressing the media here, Kumar said that she has written to leaders of all political parties seeking their support in the Presidential polls.
Kumar, a former Lok Sabha Speaker and former Union Minister, is the Opposition candidate for the Presidential polls, which will take place on July 17. The Congress leader has been supported by 16 other Opposition parties.
She is locked in a straight contest with NDA nominee Ram Nath Kovind.
�Altogether 17 parties have jointly supported my candidature. These parties may have differences on many issues, but they are all united in the belief that the Presidential polls should be contested on the basis on ideology. And I should be at the centre of this ideological battle and fight it to the finish. I am honoured that all these parties have reposed their faith in me,� Kumar said.
She added, �I have written to all the political parties and have called upon all the members (of the Electoral College) to support me and to listen to their conscience. This morning, I was in Meghalaya and there both the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition extended their support to me. Similarly, in many other states also, parties which are opposed to one another are supporting me.�
Kumar said the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) has extended its support to her candidature. AIUDF has 13 MLAs in the Assam Legislative Assembly and the party also has three members in the Lok Sabha.
Asked if it would have been better if the Opposition had declared her candidature before NDA stole the march by announcing the name of Kovind, Kumar said the question is �hypothetical�.
�Our fight is for unity, transparency in governance, to ensure respect for democratic values and to ensure respect for all sections of society,� she said.
