Rough ride for India's female presidential candidate
Afp, New Delhi
A 72-year-old woman aiming to become India's first female head of state is facing a tough battle in the race for the presidency, with her family under attack over a range of criminal charges. Opposition groups led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have taken aim at Pratibha Patil, the candidate put forward by the Congress-led government to replace Abdul Kalam, who has said he will not seek re-election. Patil, who was governor of Rajasthan state before entering the presidential fray, will face off with Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, who is contesting the July 19 polls as an independent, with tacit opposition backing. Political candidates in India -- and their families -- are expected to have impeccable reputations. But Patil got a huge dose of bad press after a court in her home state of Maharashtra said last week that it would hear a case linking her husband D R Shekhawat to the suicide of a school teacher seven years ago. Then, one of her brothers was connected to a murder in the same state. And the opposition charged that a bank she headed went under when her relatives defaulted on their loans. Patil has brushed off the allegations, and has the backing of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh -- who described the charges as "mud-slinging." But the media have hit out at her surprise nomination, and analysts say her candidacy could be compromised. "It's the first time a presidential candidate has faced such serious charges," said Kalim Bahadur, head of Central Asian Studies at India's Jawaharlal Nehru University. TN Ninan, editor of the Business Standard, wrote: "For five long years, she will be a national embarrassment in a way that no president has so far been. "And if the courts move against her close relatives in ongoing cases, her position will become untenable." India's president plays a non-partisan role in what is largely a ceremonial post but can exercise crucial influence in government formation at state and federal levels, making the selection a hotly fought contest. Presidents are elected through a secret ballot by an electoral college made up of local and federal lawmakers, and the BJP-led opposition hopes to take away Patil's votes by lashing out at her credentials.
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