While the BJP hinted on Tuesday that the trust deficit between Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P Chidambaram led to the ‘security breach’ in his office, Mukherjee said investigating agencies found nothing to prove a security concern.
“In respect of news items, IB investigated into it and they found there was nothing,” Mukherjee said when asked about a news report of a possible breach of security in his office.
According to a newspaper report published on Tuesday, Mukherjee had written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last September urging him for a secret inquiry after “planted adhesives” were noticed in 16 key locations in his office, including his room, the rooms of his advisor and private secretary and the two conference rooms.
The BJP, questioned Mukherjee’s decision to hire a private detective to investigate the case rather than sleuths of home ministry. “The senior ministers of this government don’t trust each other. People of this country want to know what was the report of the private detective agency? Why was it that the finance minister does not trust the home minister? We want to know who was spying in the office of the finance minister. The findings of the private detective should be made public. The government lacks leadership and it is worrisome,” said BJP spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain.
According to the report, the Intelligence Bureau (IB) had carried out investigations but did not find anything during the probe.
Accusing the Union government of not being able to take a stand against espionage activities, the BJP leadership said if the office of the finance minister, the second most important minister after the Prime Minister, was not safe then the government can’t protect any other institution in the country.
“The government is fighting with civil society members but there was a civil war going on between different ministers in this government. If they can’t protect their own offices how will the government protect the people,” Hussain added.