CHAOS erupted in the Upper House after Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday informed the House that a wad Rs 500 notes was found on a seat belonging to Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi by secruity officials with the Opposition and ruling alliance MPs trading charges and Singhvi demanding a probe into the ‘security lapse’. Soon after the official papers were laid on the table in the morning, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar informed the House that security staff had recovered a wad of Rs 500 notes from the seat allotted to Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi, leading to an uproar in the House.

 

While Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said the Chairman should not have named the member without an investigation being completed, Leader of the House J P Nadda accused the Opposition of showing eagerness on “some issues” while wanting to cover up other issues. The currency was recovered from seat 222, which is allotted to Singhvi, during an anti-sabotage check on Thursday, Dhankhar said. “After the adjournment of the House yesterday, a wad of currency notes was apparently recovered by security officials from seat no 222 presently allotted to Abhishek Manu Singhvi, elected from the state of Telangana.” An investigation has been ordered in accordance with practice, he said, adding it was not clear if the currency notes were real or fake.

 

The Chairman said the wad has Rs 500 notes and there appear to be 100 notes. “It was my duty and I’m obliged to inform the House. This is a routine anti-sabotage check which takes place,” he said. Dhankhar added that he was expecting someone would claim the currency notes, but no one has so far. “Does it reflect the state of the economy that people can afford to forget it,” he posed.