Non-Congress opposition parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party ally the Bahujan Samaj Party, on Tuesday asked President A P J Abdul Kalam to reconsider his decision to attend the unveiling of Hindu Mahasabha leader Veer Savarkar in the Central Hall of Parliament on Wednesday.

In a letter to Kalam, the leaders of the political parties including the Left said all opposition parties have decided not to associate themselves with the function which will 'give credibility' to the activities and 'divisive policies' of Savarkar.

Leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha Sonia Gandhi has already written to Lok Sabha Speaker Manohar Joshi against the unveiling of the portrait and may be writing to the President as well.

"It will be a great tragedy if the Central Hall is utilised for installing the portrait of Savarkar, who was not only accused in the Mahatma Gandhi assassination case, but supported the two-nation theory of Jinnah and contended that the Hindus are a nation and that India should be a Hindu Rashtra and who had submitted a mercy peition to the British authorities pledging loyalty to the British Raj," it said.

The leaders said their parties' dissociation was on principle and should not be treated as personal disrespect to the President.