NEW DELHI, July 27 � A controversy erupted over a report of bugging devices having been found in Nitin Gadkari�s residence, but the Union Minister today dubbed it as �highly speculative� even as the Congress said it reflects lack of faith and mutual trust among NDA ministers, reports PTI.
A media report has claimed that high power listening devices were found in the bedroom at the 13 Teen Murti Lane residence here of Gadkari, the Road Transport and Highways Minister.
It said the discovery was �accidental� and a debugging exercise was immediately ordered.
�Reports in a section of the media about listening devices having been found at my New Delhi residence are highly speculative,� Gadkari said on his Twitter account.
Sources close to the Union Minister also denied that any such devices were recovered, which the report said were of high-quality and of a type normally used by western agencies.
Giving a different version, senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy said since Gadkari has been a very important leader and had the confidence of RSS, he might have been targeted by the UPA regime.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said, �If reports of bugging of senior Cabinet minister Nitin Gadkari, who is also a former BJP president, are correct, they are indeed extremely serious.�
Swamy said, �My own investigations and my sources reveal that this may happen not later than October last year. The planting of the device and that means at that time, when the UPA was in power, the NSA has specifically targeted the BJP and Gadkari was a very important person. He had the confidence of the RSS.�
Congress leader Manish Tewari asked as to how the information appeared in the public space and said that if an inquiry has been ordered, full facts of it should be laid on the floor of Parliament.
