Sushma Swaraj shouldn't be pestered because she is a woman: Lalu Prasad

Patna: Amid Opposition's demands for External Affairs Minister Sushma's resignation over the Lalit Modi issue, RJD President Lalu Prasad today said she shouldn't be pestered over the matter because she is a woman.

"Sushma Swaraj is a woman. She should not be pestered over the issue. Political parties should not pester her more," Mr Prasad said when asked to comment on the issue.

The RJD chief was speaking to media persons after chairing a meeting of party leaders and workers to chalk out a strategy for the upcoming Bihar Assembly polls.

Asked to elaborate on his comments, he said he had nothing more to add to it.

The External Affairs Minister is at the centre of a major row over helping Lalit Modi to obtain British travel documents but found strong support from the government and BJP which rejected opposition demands for her resignation over alleged "impropriety".

The genesis of the controversy was "disclosure" of emails which referred that she had spoken to Indian-origin British MP Keith Vaz and its High Commissioner here James Bevan favouring the grant of travel documents to Mr Modi to go to Portugal, purportedly for treatment of his wife's cancer in June last year.

Mr Modi, who is wanted in India, has made London his home since 2010 to avoid a probe for alleged foreign exchange regulation violations in the T20 cricket tournament held in South Africa in 2009.

The previous UPA government had revoked his passport and had pressed for his extradition.