ROME: Italy's Reforms Minister Roberto Calderoli said on Wednesday he had been asked to resign after he had a T-shirt made emblazoned with cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad.
Calderoli, who is a member of the radical Northern League party, unbuttoned his shirt on state television RAI to show he was wearing one of the T-shirts.
"(Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi) has even asked me to resign," he said with a laugh, without indicating whether he intended to step down.
"I want rights to be recognised and my T-shirt represents a battle for freedom," said the outspoken minister.
There was no immediate comment from Berlusconi's office.
Under the Italian constitution, a prime minister cannot sack any of his ministers but can only ask them to resign.
Calderoli's recent attacks on Islamic sensibilities have embarrassed Berlusconi, who faces a general election in April.
Earlier on Wednesday, the prime minister met his Lebanese counterpart Fouad Siniora and said he wanted to promote dialogue between the West and Islam.
"The search for dialogue represents one of our foreign policy priorities," Berlusconi told reporters.
However, Calderoli has said the West should not try to reach out to those who have protested against the cartoons.
"I believe in a religion of love and not one of hate which some people follow. I believe that we should all be respected. It is out of the question that people coming to our house should want to impose other traditions on us," he added. Many Muslims believe it is blasphemous to depict the Prophet and the publication of the cartoons in some European newspapers has provoked widespread anger in the Muslim world.
The League has long opposed mass immigration into Italy and its leaders say violent demonstrations over the cartoon shows the dangers of allowing Muslim immigrants to settle here.
