Screengrab from a video shared by Congress leader Manickam Tagore showing a bucket placed in the Parliament building to collect water dripping from the leakage.
Credit: X/@manickamtagore
New Delhi: Visuals of leaks in the new Parliament building after a heavy downpour on Wednesday night gave ammunition to the Opposition to take on the government.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore gave an adjournment motion, demanded that a specialised committee be formed, comprising all party MPs, to inspect the Parliament building thoroughly following water leaks inside the Parliament lobby yesterday due to heavy rains.
In response, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said that the visuals of leaks was because the building was a green one and the domes were made to let in sunlight.
The Opposition has majorly raised the issue with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav saying on X that the old building was better than the new one. “(In the old Parliament) even the old MPs could come and meet. Why not go back to the old Parliament, at least till the time the water dripping program is going on in the Parliament built with billions of rupees. People are asking whether water dripping from every new roof constructed under the BJP government is a part of their well thought out design,” Yadav said.
The Lok sabha Secretariat said that media reports about water leakage into the Lobby of the newly inaugurated Parliament Building, has raised concerns about the weather resilience of the structure.
“It has also been reported that water logging was noticed around the premises, particularly near the New Parliament’s Makar Dwar, with several videos of the water logging going viral on social media platforms. In this regard, it is worth mentioning that keeping in view the concept of Green Parliament, glass domes have been provided in several parts of the Building, including in the Lobby, so that abundant natural light could be utilised in day to day work of the Parliament,” the statement read
“During the heavy rain on Wednesday, the adhesive material used to fix the glass domes over the Lobby of the Building was slightly displaced, causing minor leakage of water in the Lobby. The problem was, however, detected timely and corrective measures were taken immediately. Thereafter, no further leakage of water has been noticed. Similarly, accumulated water opposite Makar Dwar also got drained out quickly,” it added.
Visuals of the entrance of the new Parliament building flooded in knee-deep water was viral across various platforms on Wednesday night.