The Congress has demanded a probe into the letter purportedly written by BJP chief Nitin Gadkari to the Union Water Resources minister seeking clearance of dues to the contractors engaged in an irrigation project in Maharastra in 1983. The demand was made by the senior congress leader Janardhan Dwivedi while briefing reporters in New Delhi today. He said that Gadkari's letter for sanctioning funds raises serious questions for which BJP should respond to it. Mr Dwivedi also questioned the escalation in the cost of the project from 372 crore rupees to 13,576 crore rupees.

Replying to a question about raisng FDI cap in Insurance and Pension sectors, Mr Dwivedi said that the Congress led UPA government will reach out to the opposition parties for evolving a consensus to ensure the smooth passage of amendment bills in insurance and pension funds in Parliament.