India's independent poll panel has sought President Pratibha Patil's intervention against the Law and Minorities Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid for flouting election rules while campaigning in northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

"The Election Commission (EC) is shocked that instead of being remorseful about the violation of the Model Code, that carries the consensus of all political parties and the sanction of the Supreme Court, the Minister (Salman Khurshid) has chosen to be defiant and aggressive. This is unprecedented," it said in a letter to the President late Saturday night.

The poll panel's move came in the wake of Khurshid's statement at an election rally in the state's Khatakpur area of Farrukhabad constituency on Friday where he reiterated his promise for increasing the sub-quota for minorities if the Congress was voted to power.

"If they want to hang me they can, they can hang me for committing to people for a quota. We will change the fate of the poor, even if we have to go against EC, we will change the fate of the poor.

"I will then come and stand in front of the court of the people and fight my case. I want to stand in the court of the people and ask, 'isn't it the right of the people'?" Khurshid said.

The Minister made the statement despite the poll panel earlier censuring him for the same statement made on January 8 while campaigning for Uttar Pradesh elections, holding that it was violating the Election Model Code of Conduct.

India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has demanded that the minister be sacked. Senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament), tweeted: "We request the President to withdraw her pleasure and dismiss Shri Salman Khurshid as a minister of the union cabinet for acting against EC."