E-Paper
PM may drop Lalji
Vajpayee may drop senior UP BJP leader Lalji Tandon as his election agent following the stampede at the sari-distribution function in Lucknow that claimed 22 lives.
Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee may drop senior UP BJP leader Lalji Tandon as his election agent following the stampede at the sari-distribution function in Lucknow that claimed 22 lives. Shiv Kumar, a member of the state legislative council who has nursed the Prime Minister's Lucknow constituency for a while, could be Tandon's replacement.
Tandon is considered to be close to Vajpayee, but some BJP leaders have mounted pressure for his replacement. Vajpayee has also made it clear that he will file his nomination papers without any fanfare as originally planned on account of the deaths in Chandra Shekhar Park on Monday. A rally that had been slated to mark his nomination has been cancelled.
The toning down of the ceremonies comes alongside petitions by opposition parties to the Election Commission (EC) for action after the stampede. The Congress has, in fact, asked the Samajwadi Party-led government in Uttar Pradesh to take action against Tandon for causing the deaths through "rash and negligent" action.
Congress leader Kapil Sibal, who was part of the delegation that petitioned the EC, insinuated that SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav's proximity to the BJP was proved by his "soft" stand on the issue of the Lucknow stampede. The delegation that went to the EC included members of the CPI(M), CPI, Rashtriya Janata Dal and Janata Dal (Secular).
Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said: “As Tandon is Vajpayee’s election agent, the act of distribution of saris is a corrupt practice. A petition challenging Vajpayee’s election can be made. If the complaint is upheld, he can be disqualified for six years.”
The BJP dismissed the opposition's memorandum to the EC, saying it was misplaced because Vajpayee had not named his election agent yet. "The PM is yet to file his nomination papers. He is yet to name his election agent," party spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Tuesday.
But it was clear that senior BJP leaders, including Deputy PM L.K. Advani, were upset with the way in which the stampede happened. They were particularly concerned about the fact that a programme of a large scale was organised in the PM’s constituency without informing the central party leadership.
