Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah on Monday constituted a three-member committee to hold talks with political parties within the National Democratic Alliance in order to finalise a common candidate for the upcoming Presidential election, ANI reported.

The committee comprises Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Venkaiah Naidu and Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley. President Pranab Mukherjee’s term ends on July 24.

Earlier, Shah had cancelled his visit to Arunachal Pradesh as BJP party members wanted him to stay in the Capital for internal discussions to finalise a candidate.

On June 7, the Election Commission of India had announced that elections for the post of the 14th president will be held on July 17. The votes will be counted on July 20. EC chief Naseem Zaidi had said the last date to file nominations is June 28.

The presidential election has been at the centre of much speculation since there seems to be no frontrunner as of now. Opposition parties like the Congress have said they will front a common candidate.

The president is chosen by an electoral college comprising regional and national lawmakers. Votes from Members of Parliament hold the most weight, while the value of an MLA’s vote depends on the state’s population.