Bharatiya Janata Party MP Ram Jethmalani said that he will decide whether to contest Presidential polls or not by the weekend.
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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ram Jethmalani Tuesday said he will "take a final call" on contesting the presidential election by the weekend.
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Speaking from London, Jethmalani also said that former president APJ Abdul Kalam should again be persuaded to take on Finance Minister and UPA nominee Pranab Mukherjee.
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He said he will return to New Delhi by this weekend and that is when he will "take a final call" on his earlier announcement to contest next month's presidential election.
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Ram Jethmalani (File pic - Rajeev Tyagi)
Jethmalani said he wanted to contest against Mukherjee because the latter had refused to name the Indians who have stashed away black money abroad.
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"I oppose Pranab as he refused to reveal the names of those with black money in foreign banks," Jethmalani said.
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"I'm in London now. As soon as I return, I will decide."
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Mukherjee was Friday named the United Progressive Alliance candidate for the presidential election.
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Asked if he had the BJP's support, Jethmalani replied in the affirmative. "But even if nobody supports me, I have no issues."
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Commenting about Abdul Kalam's pullout from the presidential race, he said: "We can't force him to contest but still we should persuade him to reconsider."
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