Advani behind smear campaign against Pratiba Patil: Lalu

New Delhi, June 28 (UNI) Slamming the NDA's attempt to brand UPA-Left Presidential nominee Pratibha Patil a 'tainted candidate' as an expression of their ''RSS mindset'', Railway Minister Lalu Prasad today charged BJP leader LK Advani with being behind the ''smear campaign''.

''What kind of morality do these people (NDA) have can be seen in their efforts to denigrate elections to the highest constitutional post in the country. They should look at their own conduct before attacking others,'' he said.

Further attacking Mr Advani and the BJP leadership, he said those facing criminal charges for their role in the demolition of the Babri Masjid had, ''no right to lecture others on morality.'' Singling out the former BJP president, he said Mr Advani's own conduct could be evinced by his treatment of the parents of assassinated Gujarat BJP leader Haren Pandya.'' Rubbishing allegations against Ms Patil, the RJD supremo termed her as a fit candidate for the post. ''She is an apt candidate, and its time that a woman adorns the post,'' he said, interacting with mediapersons, after delivering a talk on the ''Historic Turnaround of the Indian Railways'' at the Foreign Services Institute.

On Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, who is contesting as NDA-backed Independent candidate, Mr Prasad asserted that this was a ''joke.'' 'Mr Shekhawat's links with the RSS are too well known for anybody to believe that he can be an Independent candidate,' he said.

Responding to a query whether Mr Shekhawat should have resigned from his post before filing his nomination like the UPA nominee who put in her paper as Rajasthan Governor, he said this precedent should have been followed.

''What business did he (Mr Shekhawat) have to go and meet veteran CPI(M) leader and former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu in Kolkata to talk about his presidential aspirations even before filing his nomination?'' he said. The RJD supremo also sought to know what Mr Shekhawat wanted to display by including disgraced former External Affairs minister K Natwar Singh, who is still a Congress member in the Rajya Sabha, to sign his nomination papers as a proposer.

Responding to a question on the recently concluded BJP national executive meet, Mr Prasad quipped, ''unke ghar mein khud aag lagi hai (their own house is on fire),'' in an indirect reference to the purported problems in the party.

He alleged that all the BJP's talk for a consensus for the President was a ''scheme to elevate former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to the post.'' UNI