President's task becomes easier

With a clear picture emerging after counting of votes cast in the Lok Sabha polls, President Pratibha Patil's task of inviting the largest party or coalition to form the government has been made easier.      

Since the UPA has left its principal opposition NDA way behind, an invitation to the Congress-led alliance to form the government is inevitable.      

With BJP admitting that the UPA was ahead, the NDA was unlikely to toy with the idea of staking claim to form the government, making the job of the President easier.      

Virtually accepting defeat in Lok Sabha elections, BJP spokesperson Balbir Punj said: "...We concede UPA is ahead."      

Admitting that Congress "seems to have the upper hand", senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said: "...We are lagging behind" and added the party would analyse what went wrong.      

With Congress spokesman Janardhan Dwivedi announcing that Manmohan Singh will be the Prime Minister now, Singh is set to be the first person after Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after a full five-year term.      

According to Rashtrapati Bhavan official, Patil will meet former Attorney General Ashok Desai to consult on formation of government as per earlier schedule.      

Officials in the Presidential Secretariat said Patil was unlikely to broaden the consultation process with the legal experts in view of the clear picture emerging after the counting.