Congress fully behind Manmohan Singh 'a man of integrity, probity': Sonia Gandhi

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday described former prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh as a man of integrity and probity, adding that the party would fight the summons issued to the latter in the coal blocks allocation scam legally.

Gandhi, who led a solidarity march to Dr. Singh's residence, said the Congress is outraged

at the news of summons being served to the former prime minister.

"Dr. Manmohan Singh ji is our former prime minister. He is known not only in our country but throughout the world as being a person of integrity and probity.

"We are here to offer our unstinted support and solidarity. The Congress party is fully behind him. We shall fight this legally and with all our means at our command and we are sure, convinced that he will be vindicated," she added.

Several senior Congress veterans also participated in the solidarity march that began from the AICC Headquarters at 24, Akbar Road, here.

A special court in Delhi summoned the former prime minister, former coal secretary P.C. Parakh, industrialist Kumar Manglam Birla and three others in the coal blocks allocation case earlier on Wednesday.

The court summoned them for offences of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust and under provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. They have all been asked to appear in court on the April 8.

The former prime minister had yesterday said that he is open to legal scrutiny and truth will prevail in the matter.

The case pertains to allocation of Talabira II coal block in Odisha to M/s Hindalco in 2005, when the then prime minister was holding the coal portfolio.