Vajpayee asks Jethmalani to withdraw

In a significant development, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Wednesday asked Congress-backed candidate Ram Jethmalani to reconsider his decision to contest against him in Lucknow in the coming Lok Sabha polls which he said may be the last election for both as 'active participants'.

Extending an olive branch, Vajpayee also disapproved of his party colleagues criticising Jethmalani.

In a statement in Jammu, Vajpayee said Jethmalani and he had been friends and colleagues for 40 years now and had broadly shared political values and goals and were together in the fight for democracy.