Uma Bharti withdraws her candidates in UP polls

New Delhi, Apr 13: In a move that may have an impact on electoral arithmatics in the ongoing Uttar Pradesh polls, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janshakti President Uma Bharti today announced the withdrawal of 50 of her party nominees from the poll fray to prevent division of Hindu votes.

She said the office bearers of her 11-month outfit would meet to review the situation and ask the candidates to withdraw from the fray following Vishwa Hindu Parishad Chief Ashok Singhal's appeal.

''Our withdrawal is not a sacrifice to consolidate Hindu votes, but we expect Mr Singhal to tell BJP to withdraw from the scene if it fails to secure a mandate to govern Uttar Pradesh in the elections,'' she said.

With this development about 50 candidates of Ms Bharti's party fighting on the symbol of 'drum' (Nagari) may withdraw or retire from the contest. The party office bearers will work out the withdrawal modalities in the next two days. Nothing can be done in the first two phases as the second phase elections will be completed by 1700 hrs. The party will not announce any more nominees in the future elections in U P. It had fielded candidates in Uttarakhand and Delhi Municipal polls.

The sarfron clad sanyasin who floated her own outfit -- Bharatiya Janashakti Party--after her ouster from the BJP as General Secretary however maintained that withdrawal of candidates was at the behest of Mr Singhal and nobody from the BJP had any role. She ruled out her party's merger with the BJP saying she did not consider it a representative of Hinduva philosophy. She said respecting the sentiments expressed by Mr Singhal her partymen were withdrawing from the contest but declined to speculate about what was in store for the future.

Mr Singhal had yesterday issued an appeal to all sarfron parties to withdraw from the scene to prevent division of Hindu votes in U P. He had also played a key role in bringing a reconciliation between the BJP and its rebel Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath recently.

He had also stated that he would intervene with BJP President Rajnath Singh and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to pave the way for the return of Ms Bharti to the BJP ''at an appropriate time''.

Mr Singhal said it was ''absolutely necessary'' that the division of Hindu votes in Uttar Pradesh was prevented under all circumstances. ''Hindu politics would be effective in UP only when all obstacles in the construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya will be removed,'' he added.

Meanwhile, the BJP refused to attach much importance to Ms Bharti's gesture of withdrawing her candidates in favour of the party. BJP Spokesman Prakash Javadekar said anybody withdrawing their candidature in favour of the party during elections was a ''good thing'' and declined to make any comment on Ms Bharti's statement.

BJP sources said the VHP had given the former Chief Minister an honourable escape route by making a general appeal after her candidates failed to make any major inroads in Punjab, Uttarakhand assembly and Delhi Municipal elections.

UNI