New Delhi: Congress today (Dec 16, 2004) dismissed as "farfetched and rubbish" reports that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was under pressure and had offered to resign on four occasions, anguished over the attitude of senior ministers and allies.

"I do not know from where you got it. We function in a parliamentary democracy. Prime Minister is an institution and not an individual to resign. It is farfetched. We rubbish it as it deserves", party spokesman Anand Sharma told reporters.

Asked whether the Prime Minister was anguished over the approach of the Left parties and allies in the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) coalition, he said, "It is a coalition Government. It is purely democratic for allies to express their opinion...to express disagreement. No sign of conflict should be seen in that".

Replying to a question, he denied that the Prime Minister was under any kind of pressure.

He said that the Congress, leading the coalition, was treating all allies with respect and takes their viewpoint seriously. Alleging that the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) treated its allies as "servile subordinates", he said that the Congress, being a "true democrat", treated its allies with respect.

Sharma downplayed External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh's remarks on India's nuclear policy by saying that whatever the Prime Minister has said on the issue was the "last word".

"Minister of External Affairs is yet to return from his visit. But he has not made any policy statement on the nuclear issue. The Prime Minister has made a statement on behalf of the Government and he would not be able to say anything beyond what he has stated", he said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told Rajya Sabha this morning that India was a nuclear power and asserted that the country's policies on nuclear and Defence would be based on "continuity and national consensus".

"India is a nuclear power and will remain a nuclear power," Singh said, emphasising that there would be continuity on India's nuclear and Defence polices on the basis of "national consensus".

"These are issues best kept outside party politics," Singh said responding to Leader of the Opposition Jaswant Singh who wanted the Prime Minister to clarify External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh's reported remarks in Seoul that the previous NDA (National Democratic Alliance) Government was responsible for the nuclear standoff between India and Pakistan.