In order to renew its credentials as the key Opposition party at a time when it seems to many that the next general election might be upon us before it is due, the BJP has chosen to field its own candidate for vice-president. In Jaswant Singh it has a good nominee.
Mr Singh has just the right background. He has held top Cabinet positions and has been in both Houses of Parliament for long stretches. He is also a man of dignity and gravitas, and has spoken independently on occasion. Unlike in the presidential election, the NDA appears united in backing Mr Singh, and this is a political plus, although this might not save him from certain defeat.
But thank God, vice-president Hamid Ansari, up for renomination backed by the UPA (minus Trinamul Congress) and its allies, and Mr Singh, are both worthy contenders. That said, the BJP may have underlined its position as the main Opposition party in the general election more decisively if it nominated Mr Singh — or someone like him — for President.
Instead, it took fright and dithered, letting some regional parties set the agenda. It is to be seen if those parties — AIADMK and BJD — will back the BJP’s candidate for vice-president as a quid pro quo for supporting their presidential nominee Purno A. Sangma. If they do, it is just possible we might get a peek at some semblance of the lineup on the BJP side ahead of the next general election.