Patna, Nov. 3: No, No... and finally Yes.

The Janata Dal United today decided to participate in the Samajwadi Party's silver jubilee celebrations scheduled for Saturday a day after chief minister Nitish Kumar ruled himself out of the event.

The JDU has decided to send its representative, former national president Sharad Yadav, to the Samajwadi show in Lucknow.

The Dal, however, denied doing a U-turn. "We have not maintained a fluctuating stand on the issue. Actually, it has been at the insistence of RLD leader Ajit Singh that we are sending Sharadji. Ajit Singh said that we cannot ignore an anti-BJP consolidation event. The JDU has been at the forefront of the formation of an anti-BJP front. However, Nitish Kumar will not be going as he will be engaged in the Chhath festival," said JDU secretary-general K.C. Tyagi.

Nitish had yesterday said he would not be able to attend the event because of Chhath festivities at his home. He had also shot down any possibility of a Bihar-like mahagathbandhan in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh.

Nitish even declared that without Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party of Mayawati joining hands, the formation of a grand alliance was not possible in the neighbouring state.

Nitish's ally, RJD chief Lalu Prasad, brought out the sharp differences between the parties over participation in Mulayam event. "Mulayam Singh Yadav has not called leaders of other parties to form a mahagathbandhan. It is a function to mark the silver jubilee of his party. I am going. The JDU should also go," Lalu said today, virtually endorsing the sharp criticism of senior RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, who had flayed Nitish yesterday for giving the event a skip.

On Tuesday, state JDU president Bashistha Narayan Singh had given another reason for JDU not participating in the event. He had said that the Lucknow event was being held to show the supremacy of "one faction" of the Samajwadi Party and the JDU would not like to be seen to be siding with one side in the Mulayam family feud.

JDU sources pointed out that Mulayam had not personally given an invitation to Nitish - the invite was from his brother and UP Samajwadi Party chief Shivpal Yadav, who is at loggerheads with chief minister in Lucknow, Akhilesh Yadav.

JDU sources maintain that deep mistrust still prevails over Mulayam after Nitish's failed bid to bring the Janata Pariwar under one banner last year.