June 21, 2022: Ahead of a meeting of the opposition parties to discuss their joint candidate for the upcoming presidential elections on Tuesday, Trinamool Congress leader and former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha has set off a buzz, indicating in a tweet that his party could now float his name for the July elections.

Yashwant Sinha said he "must step aside" from the party to work for greater opposition unity.

"I am grateful to Mamataji for the honour and prestige she bestowed on me in the TMC. Now a time has come when for a larger national cause I must step aside from the party to work for greater opposition unity. I am sure she approves of the step," he tweeted.

Earlier, former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had withdrawn their names as the probable joint opposition candidate for the presidential polls.

Reports suggest that Yashwant Sinha's name was discussed by the opposition parties on Monday after Gopalkrishna Gandhi turned down their offer.

Yashwant Sinha had quit the BJP in 2018 before joining Trinamool Congress in 2021. He was later appointed as the party's vice-president.

The process to elect a new president began on June 15. The last date for filing of nominations is June 29. The polls, if necessary, will be held on July 18 and the counting on July 21.