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Govt backs Pranab, says he resigned from ISI on June 20 | Parliamentary
Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal on Monday rubbished former Lok Sabha speaker
and BJP-backed presidential contestant P. A. Sangma's claims that UPA nominee
Pranab Mukherjee is still the chairman of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI).
"Pranab Mukherjee resigned from the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) on June
20," said Bansal. Sangma earlier today sought cancellation of Mukherjee's nomination
under the Office of Profit rules on the ground that he is still chairman of the
ISI. In a complaint to the Secretary General, Rajya Sabha, V.K Agnihotri, who
is the returning officer for the presidential election, Sangma's lawyer, Satpal
Jain, demanded that Mukherjee's papers be cancelled at the scrutiny stage as he
holds an office of profit. Jain said that Mukherjee is chairperson of ISI and,
hence, cannot contest the presidential poll under the Office of Profit rules.
Sangma, who filed his nomination papers for the presidential election had quit
the NCP earlier on grounds that his self-respect was being compromised. Sangma,
who is the BJP backed contestant, was first picked as a contender for president
by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa.
The presidential elections will be held on July 19. The vote count will take place
on July 22. Pratibha Devisingh Patil's term as President ends on July 24. |
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