RS, LS Privileges Committees to summon Ronen Sen

A decision to summon him before the Privileges Committee of the Rajya Sabha was taken at a meeting on Monday.

India's envoy to the US Ronen Sen, who made the controversial "headless chickens" remark to describe those opposing the Indo-US nuclear deal, is being summoned before the Privileges Committees of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.

A decision to summon him before the Privileges Committee of the Rajya Sabha was taken at a meeting on Monday presided by the Deputy Chairman of the Upper House K Rahman Khan, Committee sources said adding that the decision was unanimous.

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Besides Khan, the meeting was attended by Ravi Shankar Prasad, SS Ahluwalia, Shantaram Naik and RK Dhawan.

Lok Sabha Committee sources said that a decision to summon the envoy has already been taken. The next meeting of the Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee is scheduled on November 2 while that of the Lok Sabha Committee is expected on October 29 and 30.

The sources, however, said that no date has been fixed for the appearance of Sen before the Committees and it would be decided by mutual consultations.

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee had referred the issue to the Committee sometime back after receipt of a reply by the External Affairs Ministry to which Sen had expressed unqualified apology for the remarks.

The Ministry had pleaded that in view of the unqualified apology tendered by him, the matter be closed.