PM kept House in the dark on ministers' resignations: Cong

PM kept House in the dark on ministers' resignations: Cong
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

NEW DELHI, DEC 8: Congress today sought to keep alive the issue of resignations by two Union Ministers chargesheeted in the Babri Masjid demolition case by tabling a privilege motion against Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in parliament while Bharatiya Janata Party asserted that the charges against them were "politically motivated."

Congress in its privilege notice stated that Vajpayee had in possession the resignations of Home Minister L K Advani and HRD Minister Murli Manohar Joshi while he was responding to the Opposition demand in the House yesterday for their removal but he made no mention about these.Instead, Vajpayee chose to tell the media after the discussion that the two ministers had offered to resign, it said.

Speaker G M C Balayogi ruled that what Vajpayee had stated outside parliament did not constitute any breach of privilege or contempt of the House and he was withholding his consent on the notice.

Party spokesman Ajit Jogi told reporters that it would continue to press the "just andvalid" demand, describing the handing over of resignation letters by the two ministers to Vajpayee as "nothing but a political stunt."Defending the Prime Minister's rejection of the opposition demand, the BJP said there was no provocation for the Congress whatsoever except to counter the Bofors issue.

BJP spokesman M Venkaiah Naidu said that in 1980 when Indira Gandhi came back to power, there were several cases against her and a chargesheet pending against her but she still assumed power.

By the same analogy, the Congress could not demand resignation of Advani or Joshi, he said and challenged the Congress to disprove his point.