Kharge writes to Rajya Sabha chairman claiming ‘intrusion’ in Parliament office
The Congress president said the “intrusion” is “highly disrespectful and completely unacceptable” to him, both as an MP and as Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has written to Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar alleging that officers from the CPWD, CISF and Tata Projects have been entering his room in the Parliament without informing him.
“This is an extraordinary development and constitutes a blatant violation of rules and my privileges, both as an MP and as Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, in which capacity the Chamber has been allotted to me,” he wrote in the letter sent on Thursday.
HT reached out to Dhankhar’s office, but officials said there was “no update on the matter yet”.
Kharge said the “intrusion” is “highly disrespectful and completely unacceptable”.
“I demand to know under whose authority and instructions they entered my chamber without permission. This must be taken seriously,” Kharge said in the letter.
The CISF did not issue any statement on the matter but officials aware of the matter said CISF personnel were present with the other agencies as part of the protocol within Parliament whenever there is any renovation/construction work.
“There was some maintenance work at different offices. The keys of the offices are not with the CISF. The CISF is only present for security across Parliament. The force was informed about the maintenance work, so they accompanied the officials to the different offices to ensure there is no wrongdoing,” an official aware of the matter said.
Kharge in his letter also said that he trusts that measures will be taken to ensure that such incidents which undermine the dignity of the Leader of the Opposition do not happen in future again.
“If at all such entry is required, my permission must be sought and must take place with somebody from my office present. I look forward to your prompt response on this matter,” Kharge said in the letter.
HT could not get any response from CPWD or Tata Project officials.