Queensland state Premier Peter Beattie has denied he attacked the Australian Federal Police over its handling of the investigation into terror suspect Indian doctor Mohammed Haneef for political purposes.
Haneef is in Brisbane's Wolston Correctional Centre, charged with providing support to a terrorist organisation.
Beattie has called the AFP "the Keystone Cops" and said the investigation was farcical after a Sunday newspaper report that Haneef had been linked with a threat to the Q1 building on the Gold Coast.
On Monday, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer accused Beattie of using the AFP to attack the federal government.
"He's trying to undermine public support in the federal police for party political reasons," Downer told a local TV channel.
But Beattie on Tuesday denied he was trying to undermine public confidence in the AFP, saying it was up to the courts to decide Haneef's fate.
"All I've said to the federal government is 'come clean and explain what all these inconsistencies are about'," Beattie said, adding, "The Australian people have a right to know."
Beattie said that despite the newspaper report, the AFP had not told the state government of any terrorism threats to Queensland.
"I quite correctly demanded this be clarified," he said.
He also said he had not been in contact with federal opposition leader Kevin Rudd over the matter in a bid to use it for political gain.
"The only time I have had a discussion with Kevin Rudd on this matter was the day that this became public and he was trying to clarify what the position was before he made a public statement.
I'm not pursuing this matter on behalf of the Labor Party, I'm pursuing it on behalf of what I think are decent Queenslanders and decent Australians," he said.
"I can understand why the public may be getting a little bit twitchy about some of the information," he said.
"I say to the prime minister, come clean on this. Don't send your ministers out to attack me," he added and stated, "Tell the Australian people exactly what is going on here -- they have a right to know."
