Crosetto happy to report to parliament on judicial row

(ANSA) - ROME, NOV 28 - Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said Tuesday that he was happy to report to parliament after sparking a furore by warning of elements within the judiciary forming "judicial opposition" to Premier Giorgia Meloni's government in an interview published in Corriere della Sera on Sunday.
    In the interview, the minister was reported as saying he had "heard about meetings of a faction within the judiciary in which they talk about how to 'stop the anti-democratic drift Meloni is leading us to'.
    "Since we have seen all sorts of things in the past, if I know this country, I expect this season to open soon, before the European elections," said Crosetto, a member of Meloni's right-wing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party.
    The interview sparked an angry reaction from Italian magistrates union ANM, with its president Giuseppe Santalucia accusing Crosetto of spreading "fake news which has no foundation and hurts the institutions".
    Santalucia called on Crosetto to "dispel suspicions and shadows".
    Opposition parties also moved to condemn the remarks, with ex-premier and 5-Star Movement (M5S) leader Giuseppe Conte saying they amounted to accusing part of the judiciary of being "subversive" and many MPs calling for Crosetto to report to the Lower House as soon as possible.
    There have also been calls for him to file a report on the allegations to criminal prosecutors.
    Crosetto has denied waging an attack on the Italian judiciary, saying his comments were an expression of concern.
    "Having spoken about public meetings held by associations, it seems to me that there is not much to report (to prosecutors)," Crosetto said Tuesday.
    "If they want me to report on it in parliament I'll gladly do so "However, since I am not the justice minister, I prefer to do so, out of institutional respect, in committees such as as the anti-mafia commission or Copasir (the intelligence-oversight commission).
    "I'll let them decide which they think is best". (ANSA).