Subramanian Swamy bats for Mamata as I.N.D.I.A.'s PM candidate amid row over Kolkata doctor's rape-murder

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Friday heaped praises for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as he declared that she should be the main PM candidate for the Opposition.

Swamy claimed that no one else in the Opposition has the "grit to challenge BJP" like Banerjee.

His appreciation for the Bengal CM comes at a time when Kolkata is gripped in controversy after the rape and murder of a female trainee doctor in Kolkata's R G Kar Medical College and Hospital has sent shockwaves throughout the country.

This is not the first time the BJP leader has pitched Mamata's name for prime minister. Last year, Swamy described the TMC supreme as someone who cannot be “blackmailed”.

"Mamata Banerjee should be the prime minister of India. She is a gutsy woman. Look at how she fought the communists. I met her 10 days ago but nobody knows (that)," Swamy had said.

Meanwhile, the former Rajya Sabha approached the Delhi High Court on Friday seeking directions to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to decide his representation seeking cancellation of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Indian citizenship.

Swamy, in his plea, also sought a direction to the MHA to furnish a status report on the representation filed by him against Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

The petition is likely to be listed for hearing next week.

(With PTI inputs)