Paris: Beleaguered French politician Francois Fillon on Sunday declared "no one can stop" his bid for the presidency after a mass rally attended by thousands in Paris. The centre-right candidate insisted he would not be standing down during an interview on French television, despite growing calls for him to quit the race, BBC reported.

Fillon,63, faces a criminal investigation over payments made to family members. He suffered a severe setback this week after The Republicans party senior chiefs suspended their support for his bid and are mulling a Plan B in which the moderate conservative Alain Juppe is well placed to represent the right-wing party in the upcoming presidential election.