Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday backed the BJP’s demands for clarity on the “funding” of Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi’s foreign trips as well as the “unaccounted” income that was being spent on facilitating the same.
Speaking to the media, Rijiju also stated the ‘opaqueness’ around certain foreign visits by the Congress MP was worrisome as it amounted to a violation of Parliamentary protocols. “The questions being raised are serious because if any member of Parliament travels abroad, he or she must inform the Secretariat of the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha, three weeks in advance,” the Union Minister said, outlining the rules that every lawmaker must adhere to, purportedly for security reasons.
Rijiju’s remarks come on the back of controversy around 'money trail' pertaining to Rahul Gandhi’s foreign tours, which highlights a glaring mismatch between his declared income and expenses on foreign tours, in the past two decades, while abroad.
On Thursday, BJP MP Sambit Patra, in a scathing charge at Rahul, claimed that the declared income of Congress MP has been Rs 11 crores but he has spent about Rs 60 crore in the 54 foreign trips undertaken across continents, including Europe, the Middle-East, and also questioned from where the LoP was drawing funds for such trips.
Rijiju said that if Rahul’s expenses abroad exceed the income declared in his election affidavit, it becomes a matter of concern for the Income Tax department. Whether this income is disclosed or undisclosed, it needs to be accounted for. “I believe the answer must come from the Congress party on this,” he said.
When questioned over ‘secrecy’ on some of his foreign trips, the Union Minister said that every Parliamentarian is expected to follow standard procedures and conform to the rules. “An MP is an MP; the rules must be followed. Whether it is in Muscat, Thailand, or Vietnam, for what purpose he went and whom he met, it is important to disclose that.
We also disclose it," he said. Notably, Rahul’s purported trip to Oman earlier this month sparked a row, as the CRPF was ‘uninformed’ about it and the latter also raised red flags about it.