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| India's president elect Pranab Mukherjee greets media outside his residence after wining in New Delhi, India, Sunday, July 22, 2012. The candidate from India’s governing Congress party, former Finance Minister Mukherjee, was declared winner Sunday in the election for the country’s next president, a largely ceremonial position. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup) |
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Former
finance minister Pranab Mukherjee was elected Indian president on Sunday after
votes from national and state lawmakers were counted in the race for the mainly
ceremonial post.
Some
analysts believe Mukherjee, a veteran from the ruling Congress party, may take
a more active approach to the job than his predecessors as India struggles with
a parliamentary deadlock and slowing economic growth.
Mukherjee,
76, collected 69 percent of the votes, easily beating his only rival, P.A.
Sangma, 64, a former lower house speaker and tribal leader from the remote
northeast who was backed by the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party.
“I would
like to thank the people of this great country for conferring this distinction
by electing me to this high office,” Mukherjee told crowds of cheering
supporters gathered outside his residence in New Delhi.
“They have
entrusted me with the responsibility to protect, to defend, to preserve the
constitution as president of the republic.”
India’s
president, who takes up residence in a 340-room palace built in the capital for
the British viceroy during colonial rule, is chosen by legislators from the two
houses of parliament and state assemblies.
Under the
constitution, the prime minister wields most of the executive power, but the
president can send back some bills for reconsideration and also plays a guiding
role in the process of forming governments.
The next
general election, due to be held in 2014, is predicted to be a close one, which
could lead to a period of complex horse-trading between numerous national and
regional parties trying to form a stable coalition government.
“It’s in
this turbulent scenario Mukherjee as a president will be able to steer the ship
of the state. He’s a troubleshooter,” said Sanjay Kumar, an analyst at India’s
Centre for the Study of Developing Societies.
Mukherjee
may also try to use the presidential position to foster a behind-the-scenes
deal between warring parties who have reduced parliament to a stalemate in
recent sessions.
He has a
reputation as a canny negotiator, and was described by leaked US embassy cables
in 2009 as “the ultimate Congress Party fixer and operator” with clear
ambitions at that time to become prime minister.
“He is the
president of India, he is not the president of a particular party,” said senior
Congress party figure Sheila Dikshit, the chief minister of Delhi.
Mukherjee
commands widespread respect across party lines, but his performance as finance
minister was criticized for his failure to push through reforms to further
liberalize India’s economy.
His exit
from the ministry raised investors’ hopes that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,
who took over the finance portfolio, could embark on long-awaited moves such as
opening up the retail sector to foreign investment.
Mukherjee’s
success on Sunday was a welcome victory for the embattled Congress party, which
has been beset by a string of graft scandals, policy reversals and a raft of
disappointing economic data.
Sangma
congratulated his opponent but criticized Congress for running an
“exceptionally partisan and political” campaign for the head of state.
Mukherjee
will be formally sworn in on Wednesday, taking over for a five-year term from
Pratibha Patil, India’s first woman president.
Agence France-Presse
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