PTI
 
New Delhi, Oct 31: Mounting further pressure on the UPA coalition at the Centre, outside ally Samajwadi Party on Friday said it would go to any extent to ensure safety of north Indians in Maharashtra but ruled out withdrawing support to the government.

Blaming Congress and NCP for the current situation in Maharashtra, it said the coalition government in the state was "soft pedalling" MNS leader Raj Thackeray to counter Shiv Sena's Bal Thackeray.

"In the interest of people from north India, we can go to any extent if such a situation develops. But even now there is time. We still have some hopes on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi," SP general secretary Amar Singh told a press conference here. He was asked whether his party MPs would resign from Parliament over the issue.

On whether the party will withdraw support to the UPA government on the issue, he said there is no question of withdrawing support to the government. The SP leader described the Prime Minister as "helpless" and state Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh as "useless".

Despite Prime Minister's repeated intervention, he said Maharashtra government had failed to curb violence against north Indians there.

Maintaining that the SP has been asking the Centre to check the volatile situation in Maharashtra, Singh said, "I am not here to celebrate the Prime Minister's helplessness in public". He was replying to a question on the Prime Minister's reported remarks that what more could he do after writing a strongly worded letter to the Maharashtra Chief Minister.

Singh said the party was not "satisfied with the UPA government" and demanded that "the Prime Minister should convene an all party meeting to discuss the issue".