Saturday, October 29 2005 10:18 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Washington: I Lewis 'Scooter' Libby, a top aide of United States (US) Vice President Dick Cheney, resigned yesterday (Oct 28, 2005) after being indicted by the Special Prosecutor on five counts in a case of leaking of a CIA agent's identity.

Libby, Cheney's Chief of Staff, has been accused of lying to federal agents and perjury.

The five count indictment of 55-year-old Libby, two each for perjury and making false statements and one count for obstructing justice, has come about as a result of Patrick Fitzgerald's two year investigation into whether anyone in the Bush administration had leaked the name of an undercover operative of the Central Intelligence Agency.

The President's Deputy Chief of Staff at the White House, Karl Rove, escaped any charges yesterday but has apparently been informed that he is still under investigation.

Both the senior officials at the White House were the centre of attention in the investigation.

Libby has turned in his resignation as Cheney's Chief of Staff and this has been accepted.

He had initially denied the allegation that he had leaked the name of Valerie Plame, the wife of former diplomat Joseph Wilson, to the media.