'Pranab Mukherjee will emerge victorious in presidential race': Congress

New Delhi, July 17 (ANI): Congress Party on Tuesday expressed its gratitude to Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) for backing Pranab Mukherjee's candidature in the Raisina Hill race, and said that the UPA nominee would emerge successful and victorious in the presidential election.

Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said party president Sonia Gandhi had appealed to all political parties to support Mukherjee's candidature.

"The honourable Congress President had appealed to all political parties and to all electors, who constitute the Electoral College for the President of India to support the candidature of Pranab Mukherjee. We have just been informed that the Trinamool Congress has also come forward and expressed their support for the candidature of Pranab Mukherjee," said Tewari.

"With this expression of support, the candidature would be further strengthened and Pranab Mukherjee would emerge successful and victorious in the presidential race," he added.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee earlier today announced that her party will vote for Pranab Mukherjee for President of India.

"We took a unanimous decision for the larger interest of the coalition dharma and state. We will support Pranab Mukherjee," she said.

Banerjee said she does so reluctantly, and only because she does not want her party's votes to be wasted via an abstention.

"Had APJ Abdul Kalam been a candidate, we would have voted for him. It is our misfortune that a person of his stature didn't have the support of all political parties. After that it was only about two candidates - Pranab Mukherjee and PA Sangma," Banerjee told the media after the Trinamool Congress Parliamentary party meeting in Kolkata.

"So, the choice before us really is either to abstain or to vote. We have nearly 50,000 votes in the presidential elections," she added.

Banerjee had earlier said that she would take a final call on the presidential election just three days before the polls.

UPA presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee will lock horns with former Lok Sabha speaker P.A. Sangma in the Raisina Hill race. The presidential election will be held on Thursday.

Sangma enjoys the support of the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Biju Janata Dal and the AIADMK. (ANI)