I am union minister because of people: Lalu

Reacting sharply to Bihar Congress president Anil Kumar Sharma's demand for his removal from the union cabinet for his continued assault on the party, RJD  president and Railway minister Lalu Prasad on Monday said it was because of the people's mandate that he was in the government.

"Am I there in the ministry at Congress' favour? I am there as  I have got the people's mandate," Lalu retorted angrily when reporters sought his comments on Sharma's
statement.

"Now go away and let me do my work," said Lalu before boarding a flight for campaigning in Jharkhand.

Sharma had on Sunday requested the Congress high command to sack Yadav and LJP president Ramvilas Paswan from the union cabinet for their continued attacks on the party.

"The state Congress will send a proposal to the party high command to oust Lalu and Paswan for their disparaging remarks against our party," Sharma said.

Lalu had recently raised the hackles of the Congress by apportioning blame on it for the Babri mosque demolition, prompting a denial by prime minister Manmohan Singh, who said the Congress government's fault was that it believed the solemn assurance by the then BJP chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Kalyan Singh that the mosque would not be demolished.