New Delhi, Nov. 16: The Congress today sought the sack for junior foreign minister V.K. Singh for saying the intolerance debate had been created by "imaginative minds who are being paid with a lot of money".

It asked the government whether it believed that those protesting the rising intolerance were all mercenaries.

"President Pranab Mukherjee spoke up against intolerance several times, so did RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, writers, historians, artists and scientists. Were they all paid money to protest?" spokesperson Ajay Maken said.

He asked the government to immediately fire Singh, whose comment had come yesterday in Los Angeles.