Congress raises the issue of 'snooping' on Rahhul Gandhi, government counters the charge

NEW DELHI: Congress led the Opposition in raising the issue of alleged snooping on Rahul Gandhi and tapping of phones of MPs in Parliament on Monday, but the government countered this charge with facts and precedents while underlining that the matter should not be “politicised”.

Congress raised the issue in the Rajya Sabha with Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad emphasising that it is “beyond comprehension” why Delhi police was trying to collect information about Rahul Gandhi who has been an SPG protectee since his father Rajiv Gandhi became PM. He wondered why details like Rahul’s shoe size, colour of hair, his associates, and the like were being collected. Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley dismissed these charges, maintaining that the opposition is “making a mountain of what is not even a molehill”.

Justifying the collection of such information as an established practice started during Congress rule, Jaitley said the body of an ex-PM (Rajiv Gandhi) was identified after his assassination by his shoe size. He said even PM Narendra Modi, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, Pranab Mukherjee, LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj and he himself have gone through this exercise.

In the Lok Sabha, Leader of Congress Mallikarjun Kharge alleged the cops who visited Rahul’s residence asked “strange questions” and termed this a suspicious development.