'Fernandes spoke on DD as Minister'

NEW DELHI, MARCH 20. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) today clarified that Mr. George Fernandes was still holding the defence portfolio, when he made a statement on Doordarshan last week.

Sources in the PMO said that though Mr. Fernandes had submitted his resignation, it was only accepted after the broadcast. The sources therefore expressed surprise over the Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi's statement that the Government had allowed a Minister ``dropped from the Cabinet'' to address the nation on the national network.

``When Mr. Fernandes' statement was shown on Doordarshan, he was a Minister,'' the sources said.

The sources said the Prasar Bharti was an autonomous body and the Government had no role in granting permission to any party or any person to address the nation.

- UNI

Sonia writes to PM

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 20. The Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, today demanded that a party representative be permitted to present its views on the Tehelka tapes to the nation, on Doordarshan.

Ms. Gandhi made the demand in a letter addressed to the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee. She also objected to the Prime Minister's decision to allow the former Defence Minister, Mr. George Fernandes, to address the nation on the national network ``after he was dropped from the Cabinet''.

Ms. Gandhi questioned the propriety of allowing two senior officers of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to address a televised press conference at the Press Information Bureau. ``Your government has taken the unprecedented step of first allowing a Minister dropped from the Cabinet to address the nation on national television, and then enabling two PMO officials to address a televised press conference at the PIB,'' she said in the letter.

She urged the Prime Minister to allow a Congress representative time on the national network, ``in the best traditions of multiparty democracy''. This was necessary to allow the principal Opposition party to explain its views to the nation.

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