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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked the BJP to
stop "all the drama" being staged in Parliament
in the name of the Volcker Committee report on Iraq's
"Oil-for-Food" programme.
"I have received the resignation letter of Mr
Natwar Singh from the Union Cabinet," he told reporters
while returning in aircraft from Moscow at the end of
his four-day official visit to Russia.
To repeated questions, he indicated that the resignation
would be accepted immediately." When I reach Delhi,
you will know about it,' Dr Singh said when asked if
the resignation was being accepted.
The Prime Minister, however, did not say when he would
meet Mr Natwar Singh. "We will meet when it is
convenient for both of us," he said.
Launching broadsides against the Opposition for disrupting
Parliament, he said the BJP was attempting to divert
the attention of the people from its own "internal
problems"
He said "the BJP is facing a lot of problems, especially
in Madhya Pradesh, where the party is in the midst of
the leadership turmoil due to expulsions."
Dr Singh said it was in everybody's interest to allow
Parliament to function smoothly. "Political parties
force the people to do things which are not in the interest
of the country."
On whether he had any regrets over the turn of events
in the Natwar Singh resignation issue, he replied in
the negative.
Meanwhile BJP-led Opposition has targeted Sonia Gandhi
in Parliament demanding her resignation as Chairperson
of the National Advisory Council, saying "double
standards" would not be accepted.
Though business was back to normal after four days of
disruption on the issue in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya
Sabha, main Opposition BJP staged a walkout in both
Houses expressing dissatisfaction over Government's
response.
In the Lok Sabha, Leader of the Opposition L K Advani,
who led the walkout, contended that Gandhi should quit
as NAC Chairperson saying "double standards will
not do".
He said the yardstick for Singh should be applied to
her as the Congress was also named as a non-contractual
beneficiary along with the former External Affairs Minister
in the Volcker findings.
"Our leader (Gandhi) is not on a transfer order
from outside," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan
Dasmunsi said in a spirited reply telling Advani that
he might be a "victim of outside dictates"
but not the Congress President.
Dasmunsi said the Opposition demand emanated from its
"frustration" as the BJP has been attacking
Gandhi from the day she took over as Congress chief.
Maintaining that Government was determined to get to
the truth, he said it would await report of the Justice
R S Pathank Inquiry Authority.
"We have made it abundantly clear that our Government
shall deal with the the issue firmly," he said.
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