DMK MP Says CISF Stopped Him At Parliament House Estate Entry, Urges VP Dhankhar To Take Action

DMK MP MM Abdulla alleged that he was stopped by CISF personnel outside Parliament and was questioned about the purpose of his visit.

DMK'S Rajya Sabha MP M M Abdulla has alleged that he was stopped outside the Parliament gates and subjected to misbehaviour and questioning by CISF personnel. In a letter to Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar who is also the Rajya Sabha Chairman, Abdulla said that the CISF personnel stopped his battery-operated vehicle around 2.40 PM on Tuesday and asked him to explain his "purpose of visit”. Sharing the incident, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale posted on X: "An MP CANNOT be asked why they’re going to Parliament. As Members of the House, it is our right to be in Parliament."

Notably, the battery-operated vehicle Abdulla was travelling by is provided to MPs to travel within the Parliament complex.

In the letter, shared by Gokhale, Abdulla wrote: "I am appalled by this behaviour of the CISF personnel who questioned me on the purpose of my visit to the Parliament, a place where I represent the interests of the people and the State of Tamil Nadu. Such an unprecedented misbehavior has never happened earlier while the PSS was in charge of security [sic]."

He further said that Members of Parliament should have access to the Parliament grounds even in the absence of official engagements. "Even if I have engagements, I am liable to disclose it to and answerable only to the Chairman, the custodian of the Rajya Sabha," the letter added.

Saket Gokhale said: "Parliament is not Modi or Shah’s personal property that they can stop & interrogate MPs... Why was an MP stopped by the CISF? There needs to be an answer and the strictest action must be taken on the incident. You [CISF] are there for the security of Parliament and not as Amit Shah’s personal militia."

Abdulla in the letter sought action against the "erring personnel".

Parliament Security Transferred To CISF

The incident comes barely one and a half months after the responsibility of the Parliament's security was transferred to the Central Industrial Security Force. The security change followed a breach in Parliament in December last year.

The Delhi Police was asked to remove its personnel from the Parliament complex and hand over the charge to the CISF in April last week.