In a scene reminiscent of the attack on George W. Bush, a Sikh journalistflung his shoe at Home Minister P. Chidambaram to express disgust over theCentral Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) clean chit to Congress leader JagdishTytler in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

But unlike in Baghdad, the shoe drama atthe Congress headquarters here had an amiable ending with both Chidambaram andhis party forgiving the reporter, Jarnail Singh of Dainik Jagran. A sombreSingh insisted his cause was right but admitted that he should not have donewhat he did.

Singh's family, relieved that he had been let off by the police without anycharges slapped against him, thanked Chidambaram for forgiving him and for notfiling a criminal complaint.

Congress spokesman Ashwini Kumar told reporters: "In a democracy,everybody has a right to raise issues but hurling a shoe as an expression ofanger is most unfortunate. The home minister has shown magnanimity and ignoredthe issue. The Congress feels this issue should come to an end."

An anguished Singh said later: "I only wanted to ask how justice can bedone (to Sikhs affected by the 1984 riots) but he (Chidambaram) was notinterested in answering the question. I don't think (what I did) is right butthe issue (1984 Sikh riots) is right."

The journalist's mother told reporters outside her home: "We wereshocked... (What my son did) was wrong. We told him not to do it again and if youhave anger, talk it out." Barring a few individuals and Sikhorganisations, the incident was widely condemned. Even those who sympathisedwith Singh's emotional response said the minister should not have beentargeted.

Singh had wanted to know if the home ministry, which Chidambaram heads, hadpressured the CBI into giving a clean chit to Tytler, one of the seven Congresscandidates in Delhi and who has been linked to the 1984 anti-Sikh violencesparked by then prime minister Indira Gandhi's assassination.