Jully accuses BJP govt of secretly installing spy cameras in House
Jaipur, Sept. 12 -- Rajasthan Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully on Thursday accused the government of secretly installing "spy cameras" inside the state assembly and demanded an immediate high-level probe, after leading a Congress delegation to discuss the matter with governor Haribhau Bagade
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Jully said that he had first raised the issue during the assembly session, wherein the government stated that existing cameras had only been "upgraded", in response to a question about the funding and authorisation of the project, and whether the footage could be accessed from outside sources.
Jully contradicted the government's claims, citing a tender under the Public Works Department that revealed an entire overhaul of the audio-visual system in many committee rooms at a cost of Rs.1.09 crore, in addition to five cameras being replaced at a cost of Rs.30 lakh. The tender also reportedly revealed the installation of two new PTZ cameras worth Rs.18.46 lakh, said Jully.
The Speaker said only upgraded cameras were installed. But documents clearly show additional cameras with surveillance capacity have been bought. This raises questions of misuse," he alleged, adding that the two new cameras were connected only to the Speaker's rest room, allowing the monitoring of private discussions among members.
He alleged that the government used "emergency quota" clearances to expedite the project.
"If the government has nothing to hide, it should welcome a transparent probe," said Jully, demanding that the assembly premises be sealed immediately and a joint panel probe.
Commenting on the matter, BJP spokesperson Laxmikant Bharadwaj said, "They themselves are the James Bonds of spying and masters in tapping the phones of their own MLAs, and now they see this everywhere.
"Congress has no real issues to raise, and just for headlines, they are bringing up such baseless matters," added the BJP spokesperson....
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