Citizenship row: Parliament Ethics Panel sends notice to Rahul Gandhi

NEW DELHI: In what can start another big political row, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has been asked by the LK Advani-headed Lok Sabha ethics committee to respond to questions on whether he (Gandhi) had once declared himself a British citizen.

Congress called the original complaint, by Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former member of Parliament Subramanian Swamy, a personal vendetta, and alleged that BJP leadership is carrying on this attack. The committee’s letter is a result of a process that started with Swamy writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last November. Later, in January, BJP’s East Delhi MP Maheish Girri wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. The Speaker referred the matter to the Advani-headed committee.

ET spoke to several Lok Sabha officials familiar with the matter and they spoke on the condition they not be identified. The committee’s letter was sent to Gandhi late last week.