I have never said speaker is above criticism: Somnath

As a newspaper article with critical references to him created a flutter in the House on Friday, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said on Saturday that he had never held that he was above criticism.

"I have never said that the Speaker is above criticism. But anything said against anybody must be based on truth. And he should be given a chance to explain himself," the Speaker told reporters here.

Chatterjee, who was responding to newsmen's queries, however, made it clear that he would neither comment on Bharatiya Janata Party's stand on the issue nor on the privilege notice over the article.

"I have nothing to say against any political party. I will not comment on the matter," he said.

Earlier, addressing a seminar in Kolkata, the Speaker said newspapers should maintain objectivity in news items. "It is being observed that some newspapers have a bias towards some political parties. That should not be the case; newspapers should not serve the purposes of political parties," he said.

Meanwhile, National Democratic Alliance leaders are scheduled to meet in Delhi on Tuesday to formulate the stand on the privilege notice against the writer and Editor of a Delhi daily for carrying an article with critical references to the Lok Sabha speaker.