• PAGE ONE
• INDEX
• HOME

Vajpayee offers probe into PMO's `role' in UTI

Our Bureau

NEW DELHI, Aug. 1

THE Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, today offered to hold an inquiry, if necessary, into the alleged role of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in the UTI fiasco.

Mr Vajpayee said that the PMO had nothing to do with the affairs of the Unit Trust of India. The Prime Minister made these brief remarks in the Rajya Sabha, prior to the Finance Minister's reply to the debate on US-64.

Mr Vajpayee while admitting that he had offered to quit on Tuesday at the BJP Parliamentary party meeting, said that at the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) meeting, the constituents as well as party members had asked him to stay on. ``I treat the matt er as closed,'' he said.

Earlier in the day, the Congress(I) member, Mr Suresh Pachouri, raised a privilege notice against the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr Pramod Mahajan, for going to the press with a statement on the Prime Minister's offer to quit. This was a violation o f the dignity of the House, the member said.