Salman Khurshid row: Vayalar Ravi plays down Beni Prasad Verma's 'sarcastic' remark

New Delhi: Union Minister Vayalar Ravi today made light of his Cabinet colleague Beni Prasad Verma's remarks that a man like Salman Khurshid will not do any wrong for Rs 71 lakh, saying importance should not be given to the "sarcastic" comment.

"He (Beni Prasad Verma) made a sarcastic comment. Do not give so much importance to a sarcastic comment," Ravi said when asked to comment on Verma's remarks.

Asked about the charges against Khurshid, Verma had yesterday said, "I don't think a person like Khurshid will do anything for an amount like Rs 71 lakh. It is a very small amount for a Central Minister. If it would have been Rs 71 crore, even I would have been serious."

Verma was commenting on the alleged misappropriation of funds by a trust run by Khurshid and his wife Louise.

Asked about allegations levelled against Khurshid and Robert Vadra by Arvind Kejriwal, Ravi said the activist does not deserve a reply on the charges.

"I do not think Kejriwal deserves any reply from me. Somebody wanting to form a political party can make any comment. I do not care," Ravi said.

Asked about progress on the Telangana issue, Ravi, who is part of the negotiations, said "discussions are continuing".

"We are discussing the issue. The present status of the issue is dialogue is continuing," he said.

The Congress party has been maintaining that it will take a decision on Telangana only when there is unanimity among all political parties over the issue. PTI