Dec 06, 2024 12:51 PM IST
Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said Rajya Sabha chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar should not have named the member before the investigation was completed
Rajya Sabha chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday said an anti-sabotage team apparently recovered a wad of currency notes in the upper House of Parliament from seat number 222 allotted to Congress member Abhishek Singhvi, triggering an uproar. He underlined the matter was under investigation and he does not know whether the currency is fake or real.
Dhankhar did not give the details about the amount of cash recovered but said apparently 100 notes of ₹500 denomination were found.
Singhvi said he was astonished to hear about the cash recovery. “Yesterday [Thursday], I reached inside the House at 12.57 in the afternoon. The House closes at 1 pm. From 1 to 1.30, I sat with Ayodhya Prasad in the canteen and had lunch. At 1.30, I left Parliament. So, my total stay in the House was three minutes and 30 minutes in the canteen yesterday. I find it bizarre that even on such an issue politics is raised,” said Singhvi.
Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said Dhankhar should not have named the member before the investigation was completed.
Dhankhar cited practice and said an investigation was ordered. “It was my duty and I am obliged to inform the House. This is a routine anti-sabotage check which takes place,” he said. Dhankhar said he was expecting someone to claim the currency notes, but no one has done it so far. “Does it reflect the state of the economy that people can afford to forget it?”
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju questioned why should there be an objection to Singhvi’s name being taken. “The chairman has pointed out a seat number and member who occupies that. What is the problem with that.” He said carrying bundles of notes in the House is inappropriate. Rijiju backed an investigation.
Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders demanded a thorough investigation into the source of the cash. BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said as soon as the Rajya Sabha proceedings started, the Chairman informed the House that currency notes had been recovered from the Congress benches. “It was unexpected.” He added Dhankhar said he expected someone to claim the money but no one did so. “This makes us curious about the whole thing.”
BJP lawmaker Deepak Prakash said the recovery shows the character of the Congress. “The sacred temple of democracy has been maligned.”
Congress lawmaker Imran Masood said let there be an investigation. “There are CCTV cameras everywhere but they are unable to find it,” Masood said. He said the BJP is behaving as if the black money of diamantaire Nirav Modi, who fled India in 2018 before details of his alleged involvement in large-scale fraud at the Punjab National Bank became public, has been recovered.
An official said the Income Tax Act does not specify anything regarding such a recovery. “Individuals are permitted to keep any amount of cash at home, as long as it is derived from legitimate sources and duly reported in their Income Tax Returns and accounting records,” said the official on condition of anonymity when asked about restrictions on carrying cash.
Rules bar paying over ₹2 lakh in cash for purchases without PAN and Aadhaar details. There are also restrictions on transactions above ₹1 lakh with credit or debit cards. Receiving over ₹2 lakh in cash from a relative in a day or taking a loan above ₹20,000 in cash from anyone else is also prohibited.
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