Vajpayee unwell, not to launch UP poll campaign

Ill-health has forced veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee to give up his plans to launch the party's poll campaign in Uttar Pradesh for the forthcoming assembly elections.

The former prime minister, who was to kick off the BJP's campaign from Kanpur on Sunday, is stated to be indisposed.

"He would not be able to participate in the poll campaign for the time being," party veteran and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Lalji Tandon told reporters.

The Kanpur public rally will now be addressed by party leaders Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.

In other rallies planned around the same time, former deputy prime minister LK Advani would address one at Agra, while party national chief Raj Nath Singh would go to Jhansi, Murli Manohar Joshi will address a rally in Meerut, Venkaiah Naidu in Varanasi and Kalraj Misra in Varanasi.

According to a BJP spokesman, the party has hired half a dozen private helicopters for the poll campaign.