New Delhi, June 13 (IANS) Eminent lawyer and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Rajya Sabha candidate Ram Jethmalani walked out of a television interview when he was questioned on his turnaround in joining a party which he had strongly criticised in the past.
In the clip broadcast on CNN-IBN channel Sunday, Jethmalani was being interviewed by Karan Thapar on Devil’s Advocate.

Thapar noted that Jethmalani had serious differences with the BJP earlier, which included differing positions over hanging of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and reminded him that he had even questioned the mental capacity of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

“The Congress is responsible for all the ills of the country… and I want a united opposition to grow and there can be no united opposition unless the BJP is a party to it,” Jethmalani lashed back.

He added that he was “prepared to forgive and forget everything… in the higher interest of India, of the nation and the people of India who are much more dear to me than you are.”

He then stormed out of the interview, even as the interviewer asked him to calm down.

“I am not carrying on this kind of an interview with you,” Jethmalani said, as he went out through a darkened door.

There are reports of unrest in BJP’s Rajasthan unit against the nomination of Jethmalani, who was given the ticket over yesteryear’s film star, Hema Malini. The elections are set to be held on June 17.

Jethmalani had earlier been a member of the upper house, when he was elected with the help of the BJP.

In 2004, he had contested unsuccessfully against Vajpayee in the Lucknow Lok Sabha constituency, as an independent with Congress support.