New Delhi: Stepping up its attack on the ruling Congress-led coalition on the induction of chargesheeted persons in the Union Government, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today (May 25, 2004) sought to know whether "the standard of probity is the same" as far as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi are concerned.

Raising the issue of inclusion of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Laloo Prasad Yadav and his party colleagues Mohammed Taslimuddin, Jai Prakash Yadav and M A Fatimi in the Union Council of Ministers, BJP spokesman Arun Jaitley said, "These are persons against whom chargesheets have been initiated and they are included in the Ministry.

"The Prime Minister is an honourable man and this practice of including in his Ministry persons having criminal background is not in keeping with his stature," Jaitley said.

He said that on the other hand Ayodhya was a "national struggle" and cannot be compared with these cases.

Jaitley and former Information and Broadcasting Minister Ravi Shanker Prasad released documents giving details of the cases against Laloo Yadav, Taslimuddin, Jai Prakash Yadav and M A Fatimi.