Varanasi LS seat my first choice: Kalraj Mishra

Varanasi, July 8 (UNI) Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Rajya Sabha member Kalraj Mishra today said though Varanasi seat was his first choice to contest the coming Lok Sabha election, he would finally follow the orders of the party high command.

Talking to newsmen here, Mr Mishra said the candidates should be given tickets on the basis of their ability, but choice of party workers and local people must also be kept in mind.

Denying his claim for any particular seat, he said there is possibility of senior BJP leader and former union minister Dr Murali Manohar Joshi to contest the poll from Varanasi.

However, when being asked about the closeness of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP), Mr Mishra said ''any alliance between the two parties would not affect the BJP in any manner.'' Terming the SP general secretary Amar Singh's statement that Mr Lal Krishna Advani was more dangerous than George Bush, the BJP leader said ''we do not care about such immature remarks.'' UNI JL JAS KN RL RN1713