Speaking after a session of the party's council, Virant said that the current coalition can remain unchanged if Janša resigns. In that case, he expects the senior coalition Democrats (SDS) to propose his successor.
But should Janša stay on, the party demands that a vote of confidence be called in parliament, said Virant, who added that the DL would not back the PM in such a vote.
If neither of those conditions are fulfilled, the party will exit the coalition, leaving it short of a majority in parliament.
The announcement comes after Virant called on Janša and Ljubljana Mayor and opposition Positive Slovenia (PS) leader Zoran Janković to step down in the wake of a critical report by the country's anti-graft body which concluded that they failed to properly account for their assets in recent years.
Virant stressed that he believes the most important thing for Slovenia now was to restore trust in the rule of law and state institutions.
He added that he is confident that the SDS can find a suitable replacement if Janša resigns. Asked if Labour Minister Andrej Vizjak could be that replacement, Virant said he was a credible and capable candidate.
The DL council upheld the view of their leader at today's meeting, saying that both Janša and Janković need to resign.
Virant reiterated that the DL was committed to the coalition agreement among the five parties that make up the current government, but stressed that one of the goals of the agreement is providing for the functioning of a law-governed state.
By proposing a new prime minister, the SDS would enable the coalition and government to stay intact, prevent political instability and push on with important reforms, he said.
He stressed that it was Janša and the SDS, which has backed its leader in the face of the corruption allegations, who were threatening the coalition, not any of the other parties.
According to him, a full-blown political crisis would therefore rest solely on the shoulders of Janša and the SDS.
The DL council made its decisions unanimously following a lengthy debate today, in which MP Bojan Starman left and did not vote.
Starman, a former SDS lawmaker in the 2004-2008 term, said before the session that it was a shame that the government parties were arguing while saying that the graft report "stinks".
Meanwhile, the two DL ministers in the government reiterated Virant's call that the conditions be established for the current coalition to continued working on reforms.
"This is not in our hands, but that of the biggest coalition party, the SDS," said Justice and Public Administration Minister Senko Pličanič.
He said that both Janković and Janša will have an opportunity to prove their innocence, but added that the fact that a shadow had been cast over their integrity is enough in democratic countries to require them to resign.
The resignation of Janša would be an important step for the country, as this would be the only way that reform efforts could continue, added Pličanič.
Finance Minister Janez Šušteršič added that the government had made important progress in the past year, including with the passage of laws on the bad bank and the sovereign holding.
This has been noticed abroad, he said, adding that the economy is not the only important thing for the country and that its credibility also depends on other factors.
Meanwhile, Virant would not comment on speculation that he had held talks on a technocrat government or speak about the possibility that his party joins another coalition in order to avoid early elections.
Commenting on the news that Janković had suspended his status as leader of Positive Slovenia today, Virant said that the suspension of leadership was not a sufficient measure.
He also said that he was convinced the DL would fare well in an early election. If a snap poll is the price needing to be paid for Slovenian politics to undergo cleansing, then it would not be too high a price despite a several-month hiatus in the government's work, he added.
Source: SloveniaTimes
