After a day of flip-flop, Ram Jethmalani would finally contest against Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee from the Lucknow Lok Sabha constituency. In less than 24 hours after a statement quoting Jethmalani here said he had decided to pull out of the contest, the Congress-backed Independent candidate faxed a letter to the Returning Officer for the Lucknow constituency from London saying he remained in the fray. The letter, signed by him as Jethmalani Ram Bulchand, said: ‘‘No one has any authority to withdraw my candidature from the parliamentary election. I remain a contesting candidate.’’ The copies of the letter were released separately by Congress spokesman Kapil Sibal and Swami Agnivesh, leader of the Bandhua Mukti Morcha and a close associate of Jethmalani. Additional DM of Lucknow M.P.Singh, when contacted over telephone, said Jethmalani is ‘‘still a candidate.’’ The Congress, not prepared to take any risk, decided to keep its nominee, Akhilesh Das, in the field. Party spokesman Kapil Sibal said: ‘‘We can’t say anything till April 19th, the deadline for withdrawals. For now, Das remains our candidate.’’ Meanwhile, Swami Agnivesh went on a fast at Jethmalani’s Akbar Road residence demanding that he should not pull out of the contest. Asked about Jethmalani’s earlier statement, he said it had been ‘‘dictated by him over telephone from London and was typed out on his letter-head.’’ He said Jethmalani had been prompted to resort to it by the Congress decision to field Das. Though taken aback, the BJP tried to keep a bold face. General secretary Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said: ‘‘Vajpayee had made an appeal to Jethmalani because of their old ties and not because it would make any difference to the poll’s outcome. There are so many other candidates too and if Jethmalani decides to stay put, let him do so.’’ The dramatic developments may seem to belie logic, but they do smack of some bigger game. The understanding, which apparently facilitated his short-lived withdrawal following PM’s appeal, has apparently gone sour. Referring to the public appeal made by Vajpayee to Jethmalani in Lucknow, Kapil Sibal said: ‘‘At the time of making the appeal, Vajpayee had not filed his nomination. So made the appeal as the Prime Minister. Whereas Jethmalani had himself filed the nomination by then, which made him a prospective candidate in fray.’’ ‘‘The question is whether the Prime Minister can do this to a candidate? Section 123 (II) of the Representation of People’s Act defines a corrupt practice as any undue influence, any direct or indirect interference or attempt to interfere, on the part of the candidate or his agent or any other person.’’ ‘‘The PM comes in the last category,’’ Sibal added. Stating the appeal shows the motive for inducement, he said: ‘‘Had he not been the PM then the situation would have been different. But a PM appealing to a candidate is bound to have influence. Especially while quoting the 20 years of friendship with the candidate would put the candidate under some pressure.’’ ‘‘The Congress has the option of filing a petition after the elections under the RPA. Under this clause, the candidate can be disqualified for six years,’’ he said. Reacting to the Congress’s charge of pressuring Jethmalani, the BJP said: ‘‘On what basis is the Congress alleging that pressure was being put on Jethmalani by the BJP to withdraw.’’ ‘‘The Congress should confirm all details and facts before making such statements,’’ Naqvi said. He said the party should refrain from making such statements and that it should check out all the facts.
