A peculiar sense of lassitude, laced with both trepidation and hope, seems to have descended over the corridors of power in Delhi, with the entire political class waiting for, what one MP termed, “our own 5/11” to unfold. For the results of the Uttar Pradesh elections on May 11 will not just determine who will ascend the Lucknow throne but also decide the next President of the country.

The number crunching has begun in earnest in both the UPA and NDA camps, but both know that this time it is the “others”—including most importantly the SP and the BSP—that will hold the key. If the BSP does well and forms a government with Congress support, the Grand Old Party has a chance of sending its own man (or woman) to Rashtrapati Bhavan.

If the BSP ends up allying with the BJP, then the whole scenario changes. With the SP already making it clear that it will not back a Congress candidate, it will be difficult for the Congress to pull off a victory. In that case, the Congress might be forced to back a “secular” candidate or even a non-political person in order to stave off a threat from the NDA.

While the Congress reticence on the presidential polls is understandable, even parties with “readymade” candidates are not willing to make any moves—either formally or informally.

It is no secret that both Rajya Sabha Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee would be more than pleased to walk the short distance from Parliament House to the top of Raisina Hill. But their parent parties—the BJP and CPI(M), respectively—remain hesitant and undecided, and will make up their minds only after the “realignment of political forces” expected to take place, post 5/11.

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