The Belgium government's sale of the troubled Fortis bank to French bank BNP Paribas ran into further trouble following reports that prime minister Yves Leterme tried to influence a judge in the Fortis takeover case.

Leterme has been accused of trying to influence a Court of Appeals judge in Brussels in the Fortis takeover case and the opposition is putting pressue on his government to resign.

A higher court, the Court of Cassation, is investigating the matter even as Belgian opposition party on Thursday called for Leterme's resignation.

The Belgian cabinet, after an 8-hour discussion, decided against any hasty resignation of  Leterme, his deputy Didier Reynders or justice minister Jo Vandeurzen over the affair.

Any decision on the ministers' position will be taken only after the Cassation Court publishes the report about the judicial procedure that led to the verdict in the Fortis case.

The Court of Appeal in Brussels last week ruled that the government's sale of the Fortis Bank to BNP Paribas should not have taken place without shareholders' consent. The court also froze the sale of the state-owned bank for 65 days.

''BNP Paribas has noted the Court of Appeal's decision in Brussels dated 12 December 2008. This decision in no way calls into question the interest of this deal, bringing Fortis Bank SA and Fortis Insurance Belgium together with BNP Paribas, which is in the best interests of Fortis's clients and staff,'' it said.

BNP said it was suspending a key part of the deal due to a legal challenge over the transaction.

The news came after BNP revealed 710 million euros ($1 billion) of losses at its investment banking unit earlier this week and said it may cut 700 jobs.

BNP said it will along with the authorities and the various interested parties, examine all options, including legal, to close this deal efficiently and quickly.

A senior official from the Belgian prime minister's office allegedly contacted court officials in an attempt to prevent the court from reaching this decision, reports said.

The prime minister is reported to have confirmed that there has been one such contact.

While Leterme failed to explain  his contacts with judges in the case before parliament, the Court of Cassation has sent a letter to the speaker of parliament which contradicted the prime minister's earlier assurance that he had not tried to influence any judge. 

BNP Paribas is a European leader in global banking and financial services and one of the three strongest banks in the world, according to Standard & Poor's. The group is present in 85 countries, with more than 171,000 employees, including 131.000 in Europe

The group has key presence in three major segments: corporate and investment banking, asset management & services and retail banking. Present throughout Europe in all of its business lines, the bank's two domestic markets in retail banking are France and Italy. BNP Paribas also has a significant presence in the United States and strong positions in Asia and the emerging markets.

The parties in the governing coalition are not eager to break up the cabinet, which is made up of five parties: two Liberal, two Christian Democrat, and one Socialist. It took nine months to agree on a coalition programme, during which time Belgium was practically without government. A new period of political uncertainty, particularly during a difficult time for the national economy, is something that many politicians in Brussels say they want to avoid. 

The deal was designed to rescue Fortis, severely weakened by the financial crisis, but was also meant to strengthen BNP.

A merger of Fortis with its large base of retail customer savings would have made BNP Paribas the euro zone's biggest bank in terms of deposits and capital base.