Saturday, August 20 2005 20:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Taking serious exception to the letter written by the Bihar Governor to the Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad, seeking favor for a senior railway official, the Communist Party of India (CPI)-ML (Liberation) today (Aug 20, 2005) threatened to launch a mass movement if Buta Singh and his advisor Arun Pathak were not removed immediately.

''The Centre will have to face a mass movement if Singh and his advisor Pathak, who are hand-in-glove with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Chief, are not removed forthwith,'' state party secretary Ramjatan Sharma said in a statement.

Saying that the leak of Buta Singh's letter had established beyond doubt 'the marriage of convenience' between the two leaders, Sharma pointed out that charges of corruption and nepotism against the Governor and his relatives were not new and warranted 'immediate action'.

''The continuance of Buta Singh is not in the interest of Bihar and a fair Assembly election is impossible with him at the helm of affairs,'' the statement said.

The Left parties have already called a statewide bandh on August 24 to demand recall of Buta Singh and his advisor.