India's Home Minister Shivraj Patil offered to resign today following the terror attack on Mumbai this week which left at least 185 people, including a Malaysian woman, dead.

According to a Bernama report from New Delhi, the minister said he would take full "moral responsibility" for the carnage.

"I take full moral responsibility for Mumbai attacks," he said in a statement after tendering his resignation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The 73-year-old politician became the home minister in 2004.

Severely criticised

In recent months, Shivraj came under severe criticism from opposition parties and the public for India's declining internal security, which failed to stem the growing terrorist menace inside the country.

Indian television stations speculated that Finance Minister P Chidabaram or Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee were the likely candidates to fill the seat, while Manmohan would take over the finance ministry, which was once his portfolio in the early 90s.

Shivraj's popularity took a dive after several Indian cities like Ahmedabad, Bangalore, New Delhi and Jaipur fell victims to terrorist attacks recently, where scores of people were killed.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh is also under pressure to quit.

The Mumbai attack also resulted in the death of Malaysian Hema Kassipillay, who was on a business trip to India.

Hema, 51, who had been reported missing earlier, was found dead in her room at the Taj Mahal Hotel where she stayed.

The burnt and decomposed body was found in Room 637 on the 6th floor, which was burned down by the terrorists when they seized the hotel on Wednesday evening.

Hema, who was from Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, is believed to have died of smoke inhalation. A post-mortem conducted at Sir Jamshedji Jeejibhai Hospital found no injuries on the body caused by gunshots.