Lalit Modi row: Congress calls for Sushma Swaraj's resignation

The Congress party on Sunday demanded that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj hand in her resignation after she admitted her role in the expediting of former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi's travel papers to the United Kingdom, despite the red alert issued by the government.

"It is very unfortunate that a Foreign Minister of the country is helping an ED offender. Lalit Modi is close to a number of BJP leaders, including the Chief Minister of Rajasthan... The External Affairs Minister helping him to go out of the country to hoodwink the administration, and [Prime Minister] Modi is silent on the matter," Congress leader Shakeel Ahmed told ANI.

"The Prime Minister should immediately intervene and ask Sushma Swaraj ji to tender her resignation," he added.

Sharing her thoughts on twitter, Swaraj had earlier in the day said that she had taken a humanitarian view of Modi's case since his wife was suffering from cancer, adding that she believes that giving an Indian citizen 'emergency travel documents' cannot spoil relations between India and the UK.