Ramesh Bidhuri fails to appear before Parliamentary panel probing his alleged communal remarks

 Senior BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri on Tuesday did not appear before a Parliamentary panel probing his alleged communal remarks against BSP lawmaker Danish Ali citing prior engagements, sources said.

Sources said Bidhuri is presently campaigning for the party in poll-bound Rajasthan. He is the in-charge for the party in Tonk district that has four Assembly seats.

The Privileges Committee of the Lok Sabha has sought his appearance to record his statement in the complaints filed by Ali and other MPs for "alleged improper conduct during the discussion on Chandrayaan-3 mission in the House".

BJP MPs have filed a counter complaint, accusing Ali of "inciting" Bidhuri by making objectionable remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Earlier, Lok Sabha Speaker Birla had taken "serious note" of the objectionable comments made by Bidhuri in Lok Sabha during the discussion on 'Chandrayaan-III Mission' during the Special Session on September 19.

The objectionable remarks, which were communal in nature, were removed from the records of Lok Sabha, while Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had expressed regret inside the House.

The BJP had issued show cause notice to Bidhuri but at the same time it also made him in-charge of elections in a district in Rajasthan.

In his letter to the Speaker, Ali had written, "I write to you with deep anguish regarding the speech given in Lok Sabha by an MP of the BJP Mr Ramesh Bidhuri during the discussion on 'Chandrayan success'. During the course of his speech, he directed the most foul, abusive invectives against me which are part of the record of the Lok Sabha."

"This is most unfortunate and the fact that it has happened in the new parliament building under your leadership as Speaker is truly heartbreaking for me as a minority member of this great nation and an elected Member of Parliament," the Amroha MP said while listing the communal pejoratives the BJP lawmaker used during his speech.