Maintaining that Mukherjee's victory was "certain", the Shiv Sena patriarch said none of the two candidates in the race -- Mukherjee and BJP-backed P A Sangma -- could win the election without "borrowed support".
"Neither Mukherjee nor P A Sangma has the ability to get elected on his own or on their party strength alone. That is why the poll is being contested on borrowed support," he said.
"When Pranab went to file nominations, he was accompanied by Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Prasad, Ramvilas Paswan, T R Balu. But the Maths isn't that just because these people are with him, he will win and go to Rashtrapati Bhawan. His victory is certain only because of the open-hearted support given by Shiv Sena and JD-U," Thackeray said.
He said Shiv Sena and JD-U had decided to support Mukherjee as he was a veteran and an administrator with a balanced outlook, whose presence in the Rashtrapati Bhavan will "only benefit the country".
"Mukherjee has snapped ties with the Congress. He is the Presidential candidate and he can win. Our support is limited only to him (and not Congress or UPA)," Thackeray said.
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