Varma row: Ignoring RS notice illegal, says Congress; 'petty mindset'

NEW DELHI: Accusing BJP of "petty mindset" and "illegality", Congress on Saturday said the government's decision to ignore the notice to remove Justice Yashwant Varma in Rajya Sabha in favour of the one submitted in Lok Sabha is dictated by its desire to control the narrative about the issue, stemming from its "insecurity" that the opposition had scored on corruption by moving first in the upper house. LS notice is bipartisan signed by 152 MPs, while the one in RS is exclusively signed by opposition members.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi slammed the announcement by parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju , alleging it was now clear that former RS chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar's belated independent act on the Varma issue riled the Modi government and resulted in his ouster. With Rijiju saying that the RS had not "admitted" the notice, Singhvi said Dhankhar mentioned the notice in the House in detail on Monday talking about it meeting legal and numerical requirements, which was tantamount to admitting it. The Congress MP asked the government if RS should be giving long judgments like a judicial court to show "admission".

Interestingly, Singhvi, a senior lawyer, alleged BJP MPs signed a blank paper in the room of defence minister Rajnath Singh on Monday, which was likely an " impeachment notice against Dhankhar". He warned that the government may be committing a major violation by constituting the statutory committee to probe Varma exclusively on the LS notice.