The Congress on Friday demanded Union minister Hardeep Puri’s resignation over his emails to convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The party’s publicity head, Pawan Khera, asked whether Puri was a conduit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Epstein.

Congress MPs protested outside Parliament and the Youth Congress blocked Raisina Road, demanding Puri’s resignation.

Responding to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s remarks, Puri had on Wednesday denied any wrongdoing, although he acknowledged having met Epstein as a “private citizen” during what he described as a peace initiative.

“Any claims connecting me to Epstein’s criminal activities are baseless. The only substantive emails involved professional advice about India’s economy and Internet-based opportunities,” Puri told reporters.

Replying to a query on why he interacted with Epstein (in 2014) despite the latter’s conviction (in 2008), Puri said: “In 2008, he pleaded guilty, yes. For a charge that he was soliciting the favours of a woman who was underage. That was it.”

Khera told reporters on Friday: “He talked about underage women... what is an underage woman? Sir, tell it straight. Children have been raped…. He is one of Narendra Modi’s Navaratnas. He was made a minister without being an MP and given independent charge. There must be some reason. Was Modi pressuring you to go and meet Epstein?”

“And what’s even more surprising is that on November 13, 2014, Epstein sent an email to (American Internet entrepreneur) Reid Hoffman, giving information about Digital India…. Digital India started in July 2015. That means our Babu Hardeep Puri was giving information about Digital India to Epstein before the citizens of India,” he added.

“You and I are under the misconception that the country is being run by a mai ka laal (fearless man). A dalal (pimp) was running this country sitting in America,” Khera said.

Puri joined the BJP in January 2014 and became a minister in 2017, before being elected to the Rajya Sabha in early 2018. The BJP’s 2014 Lok Sabha manifesto promised to “nurture a Digital India”.

Khera said: “And Narendra Modiji, now tell me, was Jaishankar (who was Indian ambassador to the US in 2014) ineffective?... Are you trying to give any information to Epstein or anyone else through him?... Why were you giving it through Hardeep Puri? What is this relationship between you and Hardeep Puri, or between you and Epstein, where Hardeep Puri is probably acting as a middleman?”

Khera said Puri should resign on his own. “The longer Modiji waits for Hardeep Puriji to resign, the more this suspicion will turn into a belief that there is something even Modi fears and is unable to remove him.”

Puri did not respond to the Congress’s fresh offensive against him.