Kovind kicks off Prez campaign from UP

NDA nominee for the Presidential post, Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday kicked off his presidential campaign from his home state of Uttar Pradesh.

Kovind, who hailed from Kanpur Dehat district of UP, met BJP members of Parliament and state assembly at the official residence of chief minister Yogi Adityanath.

Almost all the BJP MLAs, ministers in the Yogi cabinet and senior BJP leaders were present at the meeting.

Speaking at the meeting Adityanath heaped praise on Kovind and appealed to all the political parties in UP to ''rise above'' party politics and support Kovind.

''It would have been better had all the parties supported Kovind.....I appeal to the political parties to shed their narrow mindset and support someone, who has all along fought for the weak and downtrodden,'' he said.

''Fir the first a person from UP will be occupying the top constitutional post....it is our duty to support him,'' he added.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari, who also accompanied Kovind, explained to the electorate about the method of voting in the presidential polling.

Adityanath will be holding a dinner later in the evening at his residence in which many opposition party leaders have also been invited.

Sources said that Samajwadi Party (SP) patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, his son and SP president Akhilesh Yadav, Congress Rajya Sabha member Pramod Tiwari, BSP supremo Mayawati and several other opposition leaders have been invited at the dinner.

BJP sources said that the saffron party was trying to woo some opposition MLAs and some senior party leaders had been especially deputed to speak to them.

Though Mulayam had indicated that he could support the NDA nominee, Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati had declared their support for the opposition candidate Meira Kumar. Akhilesh's uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav has said that he will follow the directive of Mulayam on whom to vote.