A row about the parliamentary watchdog for Italian state broadcaster RAI continued Thursday as the new centre-left chairman-elect refused to quit despite calls from across the political spectrum.
Riccardo Villari had been widely expected to step down in favour of fellow Democratic Left (PD) Senator Sergio Zavoli, a former RAI president who enjoys a broad consensus.
But in a move PD leader Walter Veltroni called ''crazy'', Villari said he was staying put.
Villari's election a week ago with only centre-right support sparked the row with the PD accusing its rivals of ''anti-democratic'' moves and PD ally Antonio Di Pietro likening Premier Silvio Berlusconi to a South American dictator.
Berlusconi angrily denied having anything to do with Villari's election.
On Thursday the premier reiterated a call for the PD Senator to quit.
After days of warnings, Villari was expelled from the PD Senate caucus on Thursday evening.
