Just and equal treatment to all religions and classes is among my priorities: Ram Nath Kovind

JAIPUR: NDA presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said he would uphold the dignity of the office of President of India and would give special attention to just and equal treatment to all religions and classes. All round development of the country and its states, promoting modern education and fulfilling expectations of the youth would be his other priorities, he said.
Kovind was in Jaipur to meet the lawmakers from BJP and NDA alliance partners in connection with the presidential polls scheduled on July 17.He addressed the state’s MPs and MLAs at the chief minister’s official residence, 8, Civil Lines.
Besides the BJP parliamentarians and legislators, the meeting was attended by National Unionist Zamindara Party MLAs Kamini Jindal and Sonadevi and independent MLAs Manik Chand Surana, Randhir Singh Bhindar and Narendra Chaudhary (Mandawa, Jhunjhunu). BJP MLA Ghanshyam Tiwari, who is facing party’s notice for indiscipline, was absent.
Chief minister Vasundhara Raje, union ministers Venkaiah Naidu, P P Chaudhary, C R Chaudhary and Arjun Ram Meghwal, BJP’s state in-charge Avinash Rai Khanna, national general secretary Bhupendra Yadav and national joint secretary V Satish were present.
Speaking at the meeting, Naidu hit out at the opposition parties who have fielded Lok Sabha ex-Speaker Meira Kumar for the presidential post. The union minister said this election was not a fight between ideologies, as being made out by the opposition parties. The ideological fight was over in the 2014 general election when the country’s citizens gave their mandate, said Naidu, while addressing the lawmakers here.
The union minister claimed Kovind would win the presidential election with two-third majority, as many regional parties outside the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have also extended unconditional support to him. BJP national general secretary Yadav said the total vote value of lawmakers from the state was around 48,000, of which the NDA candidate would get 45,000. In Rajasthan, BJP has 161 MLAs in the 200-member assembly, all 25 Lok Sabha MPs and eight Rajya Sabha MPs out of the 10 here.
Chief minister Raje described Kovind as a law expert, an ideal politician and a person who always stood to safeguard the rights of the deprived people. Kovind has worked to promote education among the weaker sections of society, she said. “His spirit of service can be perceived from the fact that he resigned from a government job and chose the difficult path of politics to render social service,” the chief minister said, addressing the MPs/MLAs.