Advani appeals to UPA to replace Pratibha with suitable candidate

New Delhi, June 29 (UNI) Senior BJP leader and Leader of Opposition L K Advani today appealed to UPA leaders to withdraw the candidature of its nominee Pratibha Patil in view of ''the list of scandals'' involving her family members and replace her with any other suitable candidate as they still had one day to change their candidate.

Making an appeal to the UPA leadership, Mr Advani said in the print and electronic media, there were a series of highly ''incriminating revelations about Ms Patil and her close family members and the controversies were only growing by the day.'' Each of these revelations, he said, tarnished the reputation of any person in public life whose norms of probity demands that he or she comes out clean. Taken together, these revelations were completely and incontestably rendered the person unfit to occupy the high office, Mr Advani added.

The UPA and its constituent parties should realise that ''arrogance and inflexible attitude'' at this crucial moment would be costly for Indian democracy. In private, many leaders of Congress and UPA parties were already admitting that a 'terrible mistake' had been made, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other responsible leaders should rectify it before it was too late, he added.

He said he was saddened by the PM's defence of Ms Patil by dubbing the allegations 'mud-slinging' because he should know that these were not 'cooked up' by the Opposition. All these allegations could be sourced through verifiable records of the RBI and other government agencies and memoranda submitted by the people affected by scandals even before she was chosen by the UPA.

''Mr PM, you have been a Governor of the RBI. Would you have a turned a blind eye to the loot of Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank by the promoter's family. You have been Finance Minister. Would you have brushed aside a loan default of crores of rupees by a sugar factory which hardly produced any sugar but gobbled up the people's money? Now, as PM would you have been unconcerned by the anguished cry of the widow of a murdered Congress leaders if the accused being a conspirator someone other than Ms Patil's brother? Frankly, Dr Singh, I didn't expect this of you. Every body knows that that you don't wield real power in the Government, but many are disappointed that you have lent Prime Ministerial voice to defend the indefensible,'' the former Deputy Prime Minister said.

Mr Advani said given the revelations of scandals and controversies if 'true personal opinions' of the Union Council of Ministers were to be sought he was sure that the opinion would favour a withdrawal of Ms Patil's candidature even at this late stage. ''I appeal to you to therefore once again consult your ministerial colleagues and leaders and allies of your party and nominate any other suitable person for the Presidential elections,'' Mr Advani said.

Asked for her reaction on Mr Advani's statement, NDA Spokesperson Sushma Swaraj said she had made it clear right from the beginning that Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat or the NDA would not make any comments concerning personal allegations against Ms Patil.

UNI