Pregnant French justice minister who 'dated' Sarkozy prompts sperm donor rumours by refusing to name father

Internet chat rooms and blogs are fizzing with rumours that the glamorous politician sought out an anonymous doner - possibly in Denmark.

Some websites have come up with hit-lists of possible fathers of the 42-year-old's baby.

Top names include President Nicolas Sarkozy, with whom she was once romantically linked, and Sarkozy's friend and former Spanish prime minister Jose-Maria Aznar.

Mystery: Pregnant French justice minister Rachida Dati if keeping mum about the father of her child, prompting speculation she used a sperm donor

Aznar has taken the bizarre step of publicly denying the rumours, while Sarkozy's office has refused to comment.

Other suspected fathers include businessmen and former boyfriend Henri Proglio, boss of Veolia Environment, Barriere hotel and casino chief Dominique Desseigne and a French television host known as Arthur.

But the minister's clinical use of language when she said if the pregnancy was 'consolidated' she would be very happy, has lead to rumours she used a sperm bank.

Steffi, a user on internet blog site, said: 'This is not how we talk when we know who the father is.

'It seems clear she has used a sperm donor so there is no father in the way to criticise her when she hands the baby to a nanny and carries on with her career.'

In a separate net chatroom, French blogger Marky G added: 'Dati likes tall blond men, and would have gone to Denmark to find a sperm bank.'

Meanwhile Renaud Revel, a well-known commentator with France-Inter radio, said on his blog that the French media already knew who the father was, but would never publish the name.

He said: 'The German or Anglo-Saxon press would have X-rayed Rachida Dati's pregnancy, to the point of producing the father's ID papers and his DNA. But the French media are kept at a distance.

'The father has been known to the newsrooms for weeks. But not a line, not a name, not the slightest allusion has appeared.'

Stunner: Glamorous Dati arrives at the Elysee Palace to attend an official dinner with French president Nicolas Sarkozy in March

The controversy is unlikely to bother Moroccan-born Dati, who has said she has no wish to be a role model.

She said recently: 'I left school at 16, my family was not privileged and I struggled for many years. My life is not a beautiful story.'

It was only at the end of last year that Miss Dati was linked to the French President after he divorced his second wife.

At a New Year's Eve party Carla Bruni - also competing for the president's affections at the time - is said to have pointed at a double bed in the Elysée Palace and - turning to Miss Dati - said: 'You’d have loved to occupy it, wouldn't you?'

The scene is recounted in the highly authoritative book 'Carla and Nicolas - The True Story', which charts the couple's 80-day romance which culminated in marriage in February. 

Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy, whose past lovers include Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton, resented Miss Dati's friendship with the president, the book claims. 

The book says the women 'who were just getting to know each other, were also learning how to detest each other'.  Miss Bruni finally married the President in February.

Miss Dati, who has never been married and is famous for her sexy choice of designer clothes, has been championed by Mr Sarkozy for many years, with constant rumours that they were having an affair before he met the then Miss Bruni. 

Opponents have attacked her for being too frivolous for a senior office of state - giving her the cruel nickname 'Rachida Barbie', as in Barbie Doll. 

Miss Dati is a close friend of Mr Sarkozy's ex-wife, Cécilia Ciganer-Albéniz, who called her 'my little sister' - making the new Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy dislike her even more.

Miss Dati confirmed rumours of her pregnancy to reporters in Paris yesterday, adding: 'I will say nothing more for the moment about the father.'

Rumours: Nicholas Sarkozy with his wife, Carla Bruni. He is on an internet 'hit list' of possible fathers for Miss Dati's child

Today media reports named former Spanish premier Jose Aznar as the father - a charge he vehemently denied, threatening legal action.

The minister's swelling figure, photographed outside a cabinet meeting last month as the government returned from its summer break, fuelled a storm of media rumours about her pregnancy.

Miss Dati has earlier said it was 'fundamental' for her to have a child, adding: 'I will be happy and feel as if I have completed the circle. If not I will be deeply sad, but I will put a coat of lipstick on it, and carry the burden on my own.'

As the only woman from an ethnic minority - and the only French Arab - to reach the cabinet, Miss Dati often says she feels she is perfectly entitled to enjoy herself.

Questioned by Paris Match about her love for Prada, Chanel and Dior earlier this year she said: 'Ever since I was little I had a taste for being well dressed. It’s a question of showing respect towards others.'

Last month, the minister's younger brothers Omar Dati and Jamal Dati were given prison sentences for drug dealing. 

Both had previous convictions for trafficking illegal substances including heroin and cannabis. 

The fact that a Justice Minister’s family were doing time in the prisons she was responsible for running did not create positive headlines.

Miss Dait left school at 16 but studied at night to gain degrees in economic and law before become a magistrate.