With Italian prosecutors formally asking Silvio Berlusconi to stand trial in a prostitution case, the prime minister's defiant refutations of wrong doings have seemingly come to naught.

Milan prosecutors on Wednesday said they have set in motion a fast track trial, meaning many a cumbersome pre-trial processes will be done away with. It now looks like the chickens will come home to roost earlier than thought, after the evergreen macho premier valiantly tried to brush off his alleged peccadilloes as no more than baseless allegations.

The fast-track trial process dispenses with pre-trial hearings and is used when investigators believe their evidence is particularly compelling, Bloomberg reported. A Milan judge has five days to rule on the request before a trial can begin, it said.

Meanwhile, Berlusconi rubbished the allegations of sexual escapades with minors and abuse of power as groundless and disgusting.

Each time fresh evidence of his alleged involvement with prostitution rings and the use of minors emerged, Berlusconi pointed fingers at the prosecutors who he said have been on w witch hunt.

But the 74-year-old premier lost significant ground last month when wire taps of the conversations of an 18-year-old call girl scandalously exposed his perversions, and prevarications.

Tapes of her conversations revealed that Berlusconi offered her money and other favors for keeping the affair under wraps. He says I'll give you whatever money you want, I'll shower you with gold, but it's important that you hide everything and don't say anything to anyone,' she said.

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