'Markandey Katju's article criticising Narendra Modi outstanding'

Press Council of India (PCI) chairperson Markandey Katju, under attack from BJP leader Arun Jaitley, has been praised by noted jurist Fali S Nariman for his newspaper article which was critical of Narendra Modi.

In an email to Katju sent on Friday, before the war of words between the BJP leader and the PCI chief erupted, Nariman said the article was "outstanding".

"I already telephoned and told you how pleased we were with the article, but I must place it on record. It is an outstanding (article) – it needed to be said by a person who doesn't merely pretend to support human rights but lives it every moment of his life," Nariman said.

Jaitley and Katju were on Sunday locked in a bitter war of words over the latter's article with the two asking each other to resign.

Jaitley dubbed Katju as "more Congress than the Congress" and said his attacks on non-Congress governments whether in West Bengal, Bihar or Gujarat seem more in the nature of "thanks-giving" to those who provided him with a post-retirement job." He demanded that Katju resign from his post.

The PCI chief, a former Supreme Court judge, hit back at Jaitley accusing him of twisting facts and asked him to quit politics.

Modi also waded into the row accusing Katju of looking at Gujarat with a "jaundiced eye" and said Jaitley's counter to the former Supreme Court judge was "insightful" in demolishing "lies" spread about Gujarat. Modi's response came on Twitter.

Rubbishing charges of being partisan, Katju said he had written "very strong" letters to Congress-ruled Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan over the arrest of two girls for a Facebook post after the death of Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray.

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