Senator Vasile Dancu, an influential member of a reformist wing of the main opposition group in Romania, the Social Democrats (PSD), announced his resignation as vice-president of the party on Tuesday.

The senator sent a letter in this regard to party president Mircea Geoana, arguing that as a leftist intellectual he couldn't accept an interdiction to speak publicly about his views and strategic plans of the party.

Dancu states that this affects his freedoms and therefore cannot accept it.

Dancu, a Senator from Cluj, serves as a Member of the European Parliament for the European Socialists. He is also seen as a key member of the influential Cluj branch of the PSD, which is generally considered to be the most reformist wing of the party.