Officials of the Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) from Belgrade who had demanded the resignation of party leader Vuk Draskovic were informed Tuesday that they were expelled from the party.

SPO, which is in the ruling coalition, told Tanjug that the expulsion procedure was in accordance with the Statute of the party.

The presidents of four SPO municipal councils that requested Draskovic's resignation said in a statement that the decision to dismiss them was illegal and the result of arbitrary moves by Draskovic and his violation of the Statute.

In a statement, the presidents of the SPO councils of Belgrade municipalities Vozdovac, Vracar, Rakovica and Mladenovac said that the decision to dismiss them was taken by the Belgrade SPO Committee, which is not empowered by the Statute for such a decision.

The presidents of the four municipal councils last week called on Draskovic to resign, claiming that he was violating the party Statute and program.

SPO Vice-President Alexander Jugovic described the request as a media and political lynching due to the SPO joining the U-Turn movement recently launched by the opposition Liberal Democratic Party.