Healthy for democracy: Congress after Rahul Gandhi attack

The political storm over Rahul Gandhi's blunt attack on the Ordinance on convicted lawmakers refused to die with BJP today saying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should lisen to his conscience and quit and Congress maintaining the criticism is "healthy for democracy".

As the Congress sought to project a united front, a day after Rahul attacked the government over the Ordinance, NCP, a key ally, said his outburst was unfortunate and embarassing while annother ally National Conference (NC) sought a meeting of UPA Coordination Committee to discuss the controversial ordinance threadbare.

"If the Prime Minister accepts my request to hear the voice of his conscience, the moment he lands in Delhi he should head to the Rashtrapati Bhawan to tender his resignation," BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

"Dr Manmohan Singh, come on. Do you have any conscience left? Because the issue is not of Dr Manmohan Singh, the issue is that of the integrity of the office of Prime Minister of the country," Prasad told reporters in Delhi.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also said that if the Prime Minister has even a little bit of "shame and self-respect" then he along with his entire Cabinet, should immediately step down.

Another BJP leader Arun Jaitley insisted that Rahul's intemperate criticism of the Ordinance "damaged" the dignity of the office of the Prime Minister.

But Union minister Milind Deora termed the Congress Vice President's criticism of the controversial ordinance that protects convicted lawmakers "healthy for democracy" and said there was nothing wrong in accepting and rectifying an error.

"It's a healthy day for democracy in Congress, it's a healthy day for democracy in UPA government and it's a healthy day for democracy in India," Deora, Union Minister of State for Communication and IT, told reporters in Mumbai.

Deora also attacked the BJP for trying to make the Ordinance a party versus government issue and for demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

"I think the way the events have come out, it is very unfortunate. It could have been handled in a better way. It is embarrassing," Union Minister and NCP leader Praful Patel said in Kolkata.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and NC leader Omar Abdullah said the time has come for convening a meeting of the UPA Coordination Committee.

"All the constituents of UPA should be taken into confidence and the misunderstandings which have been created regarding this Ordinance and a situation which has been created publicly, that needs to be set right privately in a closed room," he told reporters in Srinagar.