Advani lauds press for 'exposing' Pratibha

Indore, July 10 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and former Deputy Premier L K Advani today lauded the Fourth Estate by saying that the allegations against UPA presidential candidate Pratibha Patil were the outcome of investigative reporting by both print and electronic media.

''The accusations were not levelled by the BJP or other opposition parties. They are the result of a press investigation into the functioning of organisations belonging to Ms Patil and her kin,'' he told reporters here.

Denying that the Congress and other UPA constituents' allegation that the opposition was levelling ''baseless accusations with inferior objectives,'' Mr Advani claimed, ''we have maintained the level of the election campaign.'' Describing Ms Patil as a lightweight nominee, he added that the people entrusted with the responsibility of upholding the Constitution should ensure that the President's post was not undervalued.

''The post's prestige suffered the first time in 1969 when an ugly smear campaign was unleashed by a Congress faction against that party's presidential candidate Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy,'' Mr Advani alleged. 'Presidential Election 07' -- a collection of newspaper reports regarding Ms Patil and published in ''national interest'' by Delhi-based institute India Projects -- were distributed during the press conference.

Mr Advani was here to inaugurate a two-day Abhyas Varg for training BJP MPs and MLAs from Madhya Pradesh.

''Efforts to convert swaraj into suraaj (good governance) are being made on priority basis in this state. I have no doubt that next year's assembly poll will be fought under the leadership of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan,'' he said.

UNI