New Delhi, June 12 (UNI):With little over a month left for the Presidential elections, the BJP today took the first step to evolve a consensus on selection of candidates and other related measures by setting up a three-member panel comprising senior leaders and authorising it to hold parleys with opposition parties. The committee comprising three Union Ministers -- Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and M Venkaiah Naidu and formed by BJP chief Amit Shah -- will hold talks with leaders of various political parties and try to work out a consensus for the Presidential elections, party general secretary Arun Singh said in a statement here. The opposition parties, including the likes of Congress, the Left and regional parties, have been trying to put the ball in the court of the BJP-led NDA dispensation to evolve a consensus on the Presidential elections. On May 26, the Opposition parties in a luncheon meeting convened by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, sought to pitch for a "non-RSS" candidate for Presidential polls without, however, saying in as many words. Emerging out of a meeting of 17 Opposition parties, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad had said, "We all want a candidate who can steadfastly uphold constitutional values". The 17 Opposition parties including smaller regional outfits like Indian Union of Muslim League, JMM and Kerala Congress (Mani) sought to put the onus on the ruling BJP to build a consensus and insisted that "so far it has been the normal practice and tradition that the ruling dispensation would try to create a consensus for elections to the important posts of President and Vice-President". Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said, "Everybody is in favour of a consensus and a secular candidate". However, she said in case the consensus does not emerge between the ruling dispensation and the Opposition parties, the major opposition parties would form a smaller group to select a candidate on behalf of the opposition parties. "
