TMC leader Yashwant Sinha on Tuesday said that he will "step aside" from the party to work for the larger national cause of greater Opposition unity.

The former Union minister's announcement came amid speculation that his name will be pitched by TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as the joint opposition candidate for the upcoming presidential elections.

"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," Sinha said in a tweet.

Opposition parties are set to meet in Delhi on Tuesday to decide on their joint candidate for the presidential polls scheduled on July 18.