The minister said, "It is right for me to step down under these circumstances."

Observers said the minister, who leads the prosecution, might have felt unnerved by prosecutors' interim investigation results that listed the president as a "suspect" in the scandal.

The presidential office has strongly denounced the results, saying they were politically biased and a mixture of "immagination and conjectures.

Park now faces an independent counsel probe into the scandal, through which the presidential office vowed to clear what it calls unfounded allegations against her. The counsel, to be recommended by the opposition parties, is expected to begin the investigation next month for a period of up to four months. (Yonhap)