Prime minister Manmohan Singh on Friday appeared to raise doubts over the veracity of diplomatic correspondence cited by the Wikileaks and insisted that he had "not authorised anybody" to purchase votes nor was he involved in any such "transactions".

"I think, people who are affected by them (Wikileaks expose), they have already commented on them, casting serious doubts about the veracity of allegations made in these diplomatic despatches," Singh said here while commenting on the Wikileaks expose which alleged that MPs were purchased during the 2008 trust vote.

"I have no knowledge of any such purchases and I am absolutely categorical, I have not authorised anyone to purchase any votes. I am not aware of any acts of purchase of votes," he said while replying to questions at the India Today Summit.

"I am absolutely certain in asserting that I am not at all, I think, involved in any of these transactions," the prime minister insisted.

His response, however, did not categorically clarify whether or not the purchases took place at all during the confidence motion on July 22, 2008.

"As far as the events of the last few days (are concerned) and the so-called Wikileaks, I would not like to comment," Singh said about the Opposition onslaught on the government following the Wikileaks expose.

"I would not like to comment on what we are going to do right now or in days to come. These are the matters which are being discussed in Parliament. If I have anything to say, we would say in Parliament first," he said.

Singh was answering questions over the correspondence mentioned in Wikileaks between the US embassy here and Washington in which it was alleged that Congress had kept Rs 50-60 crore for buying MPs to vote in favour of the UPA-I.

After the correspondence was made public yesterday, the opposition has raised demands for the resignation of the government, saying it was the "most corrupt" dispensation of independent India and allegations against it had maligned the country.

Talking about the issue of corruption, the prime minister said "some inadequacies have become apparent in our systems of functioning" and "we have to deal squarely with the malaise".

He said there was a need to "reform and improve governance" at all levels and there should be no doubt about his government's commitment to root out corruption, to clean our political system of the malaise that is of concern to public at large.

Agreeing with a questioner that allegations like 'cash-for-vote' affects the country's image, Singh said, "this lays an emphasis that we need strong, purposeful electoral reforms in which funding of elections and political parties can be more transparent (and) accountable than it is presently."

To a question on growing demands by various communities for reservation in jobs and educational institutions, the prime minister said scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and some minority communities have "suffered from persistent discrimination" over centuries and the government has an obligation to correct it.

This can be done by affirmative action, he said, adding the government was, at the same time, committed to excellence and rewarding of excellence.

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PM rejects bribery charges contained in Wikileaks

Refusing to buckle under attack over the Wikileaks expose, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today rubbished charges of bribery during the 2008 Trust Vote based on "speculative and unverified" cables and asserted that no one from Congress or government engaged in any "unlawful act".

Making a statement in both Houses of Parliament, an assertive Singh hit out at the Opposition for lending "dignity" to "purported" correspondence between the US Embassy here and State Department in Washington and raising "old charges that have been debated, discussed and rejected by the people of India."

Amid thumping of desks by the Treasury Benches, he said, "No one from the Congress party or government indulged in any unlawful act" during the July 2008 Confidence Motion.

"An issue was raised that the offence of bribery was committed in India. Government rejects the allegations absolutely and firmly," he said, referring to the charges in the Wikileaks that bribes were paid to win the Confidence Motion of UPA-I after Left withdrew support over Indo-US nuclear deal.

Raising questions over the cables cited by the Wikileaks website, the Prime Minister said in identical statements in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha that, "The government cannot confirm the veracity, content or even the existence of such communication."

To press his contention, he said those who have been named by the Wikileaks have "stoutly rejected" the charges.

Hitting out at the Opposition, he said it was "unfortunate" that it continues to raise the "old charges".

"It is most surprising that speculative, unverified and unverifiable communications should be given dignity and seized upon by the Opposition parties to revive old charges that have been soundly rejected," Singh said.

He pointed out that the UPA-I had won the Confidence Motion in July 2008 with 275 votes in favour and 256 against.

These allegations of bribery were investigated by a committee of the 14th Lok Sabha which concluded that there was insufficient evidence to draw any conclusion.

"I am disappointed that the Opposition has forgotten what happened thereafter. The Opposition repeated the allegations of bribery and how did the people respond," he said, citing the increase in Congress seats from 141 to 206 in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls as compared to BJP whose tally declined from 138 to 116 and that of Left parties from 59 to 34.

Insisting that the UPA-I "always enjoyed" the confidence of people, Singh said, "The UPA-II government has been formed in the 15th Lok Sabha and enjoys the confidence of this House and the people of India."

In both the Houses, Opposition members wanted to seek clarifications on Singh's statement but they were disallowed.

In the Rajya Sabha, Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley said the Opposition could not be "gagged" after Chairman Hamid Ansari said rules do not permit clarifications as the Prime Minister had not made a suo motu statement but had spoken in response to demands.

This led to uproar in the House and adjournment, first till 3 PM and then for the day.

Similarly, the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day in view of uproar by the Opposition members.

Earlier in the morning, Singh said at a function, "I have no knowledge of any such purchases and I am absolutely categorical, I have not authorised anyone to purchase any votes. I am not aware of any acts of purchase of votes."

He insisted, "I am absolutely certain in asserting that I am not at all, I think, involved in any of these transactions."

US declines to comment on 'Wiki' cable on cash for vote

The US today declined to comment on a WikiLeaks cable, which sparked allegations that UPA-I purchased the support of MPs to survive the trial of strength at the height of crisis over Indo-US nuclear deal in 2008, but noted it favours greater government transparency world over.

"I'm not going to say it's (cable) classified or not, but certainly if it is classified, we wouldn't speak about it, and we're not going to speak about it in way, shape or form," US State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters at his daily news conference.

He was responding to a question on the uproar in India over the WikiLeaks cable that claimed an aide of former Union Minister Satish Sharma had shown to the diplomat the currency chests that were part of Rs 50 crore to Rs 60 crore money collected by Congress for purchase MPs for the vote in the Lok Sabha.

"Does the US condone such open corruption in other governments?" a reporter asked Toner.

The spokesman replied: "To your broader question about corruption in government, of course the US is always for greater transparency in governments throughout the world because transparency in governments leads to better political systems that are able to, you know, help the people that they represent."

"More broadly, we deal with corruption issues in many countries throughout the world. That's an important part of our assistance efforts to many countries in the world. But specifically what pertains to India, I really can't speak to that," he added.