Railway Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday withdrew his resignation and resumed work at Rail Bhavan in New Delhi.

He had quit following criticism from his detractors in the Samata Party.

"I regret that I could not keep my emotions under control, causing inconvenience to all," he said after returning to work.

The crisis in the Samata Party triggered by his resignation blew over on Wednesday night after one of his detractors, Prabhunath Singh, met him and patched up differences.

The minister said, "I was hurt because of certain developments and after talking to everyone and Samata Party president George Fernandes, I felt that taking into consideration sentiments of everybody, I must return to work. That is why I have resumed my duties."

Kumar said the railways would continue to strive to make travel safer.

Asked whether he had met the prime minister before resuming office, Kumar said Atal Bihari Vajpayee had rejected his resignation.

Since it was a party matter, 'all of us sat together and resolved the issue', Kumar added.

He said railway union representatives, including those from the All India Railwaymen Federation and National Federation of Indian Railwaymen, had urged him to withdraw his resignation.

"When it involves the sentiments of others, then I should also keep my emotion under control," he said.