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Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow
Union Minister of State for Programme Implementation and Statistics Maneka Gandhi on Friday kept away from a pre-poll meeting of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies in Uttar Pradesh.
Maneka Gandhi, angry with the BJP leadership ever since Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee changed her portfolio in the Union Cabinet, has fielded 12 candidates in Uttar Pradesh, though she had been allotted only six seats under the alliance's seat-sharing arrangement.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP state headquarters after the meeting, alliance leaders promised a 'mini-NDA' government in UP.
"Manekaji could not turn up because of some unavoidable engagement," said BJP's UP unit chief Kalraj Mishra. However, few believed him.
Among those who attended the meeting were: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Raj Nath Singh, Samata Party's Nitish Kumar, Janata Dal-United's Sharad Yadav, Lok Shakti Dal's Ram Vilas Paswan and Rashtriya Lok Dal's Rameshwar Singh.
The leaders maintained that though their parties have independent election manifestos, they have all agreed upon a common minimum programme.
"Since we have decided to contest the polls on a common minimum programme, we will not have the Ram Temple on our party agenda in the election," Chief Minister Raj Nath Singh declared.
It was also announced that Raj Nath Singh would be the alliance's chief ministerial candidate.
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