RSS okay with Sushma as prez

A section of the RSS is understood to have conveyed to the BJP that they are not averse to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj being considered for the post of the President.

They said Sushma has the political stature, administrative experience and constitutional knowledge required to hold the august office.

The seven-time MP and three-time MLA has regained health and joined office after undergoing a kidney transplant last December at AIIMS, Delhi. Sushma has come in for praise for her prompt and relentless efforts to rescue several stranded Indians from distress situations.

The NDA nominee will be finalised only after RSS agrees to a candidate shortlisted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah.

A BJP source said a structured meeting with the RSS top brass has not taken place so far, though it was speculated that Shah had broached the topic when he met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Nagpur on May 30.