New Delhi, Dec. 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his silence on Arun Jaitley today, finally batting for his finance minister and most steadfast political ally in the BJP one week after corruption charges erupted against him.

However, Modi gave no hint that action would be taken against BJP MP Kirti Azad, the original accuser whose charges have been picked up by the Opposition to demand Jaitley's sacking.

A BJP parliamentary party official quoted the Prime Minister as telling a meeting of party MPs today that Jaitley would emerge from the DDCA controversy "spotlessly clean" just as L.K. Advani had come out "pristine pure" from a "trial by fire" in the hawala money-laundering case.

Advani had resigned as MP after the hawala charges were levelled against him and had vowed not to contest an election till he was cleared. He sat out the 1996 Lok Sabha election.

Jaitley, who had been mentored by the party veteran, was the spearhead of the "defend Advani" campaign in the hawala case.

The Prime Minister was quoted as saying at this morning's meeting: "The Congress committed two big mistakes. The first was when it levelled the charges against Advaniji in the hawala case. The country and its people stood as one behind Advaniji and at last the Congress's plot was exposed. Advaniji leads an unblemished life. Jaitleyji is similarly spotlessly clean. I am sure that he will emerge out of the volley of charges and counter-charges spotlessly clean."

Advani and Jaitley were on the dais, as is the norm at such meetings, when Modi spoke. Kirti, who has made the charges against Jaitley that have been played up in a big way by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal since the CBI raid on his office last Tuesday, did not attend the meeting.

The Opposition seized on the comparison with Advani to ask if the Prime Minister was suggesting that Jaitley resign.

CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said: "By drawing a parallel with Advani, the PM is giving a hint to Jaitley that he should resign, get himself cleared and come back."

Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad echoed him, saying he had heard that the Prime Minister said "Jaitley will come out of this like L.K Advani in the Jain hawala case. I will remind Jaitley that Advani had then resigned and had not come back till he got a clean chit from the Supreme Court".

"So the Prime Minister seems to be telling Jaitley that he should not continue as finance minister till he gets cleared," Azad said.

The BJP rejected the suggestion. "These are figments of imagination," parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said. A BJP general secretary, who asked not to be named, added: "Modi's simple point was that Advani's and Jaitley's honesty was unquestionable."