Chaos reigned in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, following the revelation that &ldquo;wads of cash&rdquo; were found under the seat currently assigned to Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi. While the Congress was livid that the MP&rsquo;s name was revealed, the BJP, led by Leader of the House JP Nadda, called for a detailed investigation into what they termed a &ldquo;blow (to) and blemish&rdquo; on the House&rsquo;s integrity.&nbsp;
Singhvi, the current occupant of seat 222, meanwhile, emulated the eye of the proverbial storm.
Unfazed, he explained that not only was he &ldquo;astonished&rdquo; to hear about the money, but that he had only been in the House for three minutes. Interestingly, he added that he had spent 10 times that amount of time in the canteen.
Mentioning his habit of &ldquo;only carrying ₹500&rdquo; to the House, he also expressed surprise that the &ldquo;bizarre&rdquo; issue was being politicized.&nbsp;
The din broke out when Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankar announced that the currency notes had been discovered during an anti-sabotage security check on Thursday.
&ldquo;When it was brought to my notice, I thought someone would come back to claim it,&rdquo; he added, before informing the House that an investigation had been launched as is required by law.&nbsp;
Embarrassed by having a party colleague linked to the find, Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge raised strong objections against the revelation of Singhvi&rsquo;s name.
&ldquo;A member should not be named in the case until an investigation is done and the authenticity of the incident is established. You are all lawyers. How can you do this?&rdquo; Kharge asked.
BJP National President JP Nadda said that the incident was a serious one, which had hurt the dignity of the House.
&ldquo;I have faith in your ruling that a detailed investigation will be conducted,&rdquo; he told Dhankar, adding that he hoped the good sense would prevail on the Opposition.&nbsp; Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said he didn&rsquo;t find any substance LoP&rsquo;s objections. &ldquo;It is protocol for the anti-sabotage team to check the seats at the close of proceedings. They found the currency notes in seat 222. So, I don&rsquo;t understand why there should be any objections to the seat&rsquo;s occupant being named. I fully agree with the Chairman&rsquo;s observation that there must be a serious investigation,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I am quite astonished to even hear about it. I never heard of it. I reached the inside of the House yesterday at 12.57 p.m. The House rose at 1 pm. From 1 to 1.30 p.m., I sat with Ayodhya Prasad in the canteen and had lunch. At 1.30 p.m., I left Parliament. So my total stay in the House yesterday was three minutes and my stay in the canteen was 30 minutes. I find it bizarre that even on such issues politics is done&rdquo;&nbsp;IANS quoted Singhi as saying.
&mdash;IANS
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Abhishek Manu Singhvi denies links to cash found in RS

Cong embarrassed that MP’s name was shared, BJP calls for probe, MP claims astonishment 

Cash Find Leads to Row in RS

Cong embarrassed that MP’s name was shared, BJP calls for probe, MP claims astonishment

December 6, 2024 | 21:10 IST