ND Tiwari still wants to be active in politics

86-year-old former Chief Minister Narayan Dutt Tiwari still wants to be active in politics but says the Congress party does not require him.

"I am the servant of people and have been serving them directly or indirectly. I will definitely serve them if a chance is given to me again to serve in the mainstream. No other work is greater than serving the nation for me," he said answering questions from journalists.

Asked about his health condition, Tiwari, who quit as Andhra Pradesh Governor in wake of a sleaze controversy, said he was "fully fit" and discharging his moral responsibility regularly as a dedicated servant of people.

Asked whether his party was lagging behind by not benefiting from his experiences, the former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand said, "It will not be appropriate for me to to answer this question."

Pointing out his long association with the Congress from the days of Mahatama Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, Tiwari said, "...Some people say, times have changed. Perhaps in this age peoples' servants like me are no longer required. Now they only come (to me) to seek blessings at opportune times."

He also expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of the development works in Uttarakhand where Vijay Bahuguna is the Congress Chief Minister.

"Sense of service and dedication is required for bringing development. It is great pain to see that a development work is pending for a long time and the representatives of the government are not serious about it," he said.

Asked about the controversy surrounding a paternity suit involving him, Tiwari said he became "victim of a conspiracy hatched by his confidants" and clarified that he was not interested in furthering the legal fight on it.