Minister of Corporate Affairs Murli Deora has offered to resign ahead of talk of a possible Cabinet reshuffle.
In a statement Deora said, "Due to personal reasons, I have offered to step down as minister from the Union Cabinet and offer my services for the Congress Party , where my political career began. I thank the Congress President and Prime Minister for their continuous support and guidance."
Deora, 74, said he has submitted his resignation and sought to dismiss reports that he has asked for his son Milind Deora's inclusion in the council of ministers.
"Yes, I have offered to Congress President Sonia Gandhi to step down from the Union Council of Ministers... Have not asked for anything more... It is not a sudden decision," Deora told PTI.
Deora, however, clarified that he hasn't resigned yet and had offered to relinquish charge of the Corporate Affairs Ministry "orally" to Gandhi a few weeks back.
It wasn't known what Gandhi's reaction was. "I have the satisfaction of completing a full five-year stint as Union Minister and so now I thought it will be appropriate to step down," he said without elaborating.
A senior office-bearer of the Congress said Deora handed his resignation to party president Sonia Gandhi last week and is learnt to have pushed for son Milind Deora’s inclusion as minister of state in the council of ministers. Milind is a second-time MP from South Mumbai.
When contacted, Deora declined comment on his resignation. All that he said was that he had “already done a five-year stint as Cabinet minister” and that he was getting on in age.
The Congress office-bearer, who did not wish to be named, said Deora was also piqued over the manner in which his successor S Jaipal Reddy handled the media on the draft report of the Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG), which pointed out several violations in the execution of exploration contracts by the petroleum ministry between 2006 and 2008.
There is talk of a Cabinet reshuffle after President Pratibha Patil's return from her sojourn in Hyderabad on July 8.
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