Allegations motivated, says Patil

Pratibha Patil, the presidential candidate of Congress and its allies, is embarking on a whirlwind tour of all the states and Union Territories to campaign for the election, beginning tomorrow from Kerala.

As the last late for withdrawal of nominations ended today, Patil issued a brief signed statement saying that "allegations against me are motivated and have been answered".

"In my over five decades of public life, I have always endeavoured to be true to my conscience," she said.

Congress leaders said although numbers were clearly in their favour, the party was still working on roping in small parties in the states, which have not yet stated their position on the presidential poll.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Priyaranjan Dasmunshi claimed that "we are confident of getting 5.75 lakh votes, but our target is to touch 6 lakh". He claimed that during Patil's campaign, no counter-allegations would be levelled at the rival.