Rajasthan Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) president Madan Rathore has issued a show cause notice to Cabinet Minister Kirodi Lal Meena for allegedly tarnishing the state government’s image by claiming that his phone was being tapped.

The notice comes after Meena made the allegation during a recent public meeting, triggering political controversy, party leaders said on Monday, reported news agency PTI.

Following Meena’s remarks, the opposition Congress raised the issue in the Rajasthan Assembly, leading to chaos on February 7. Congress legislators, wearing black armbands, stormed into the well of the House, shouting slogans against the BJP government.

The party also demanded Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma’s resignation over the claim. In protest, Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully refused to deliver his speech on the Governor’s address, while Congress MLAs continuously raised slogans during the chief minister’s speech.

The show cause notice accuses Meena of damaging the BJP government’s reputation with his statements.

According to PTI, the notice states, "You are a member of the BJP and have been elected MLA from Sawai Madhopur region on the party ticket. You are also a minister in the Rajasthan government. Recently, you made available the news of your resignation from the Council of Ministers for publication in the newspaper. You also accused the BJP government of getting phone calls tapped by giving a public statement, which is untrue.”

The notice, issued under the direction of the party’s national president, requires Meena to submit a response within three days.

In response, Meena claimed he was unaware of the notice but assured that he would reply once he received it.

“I am a disciplined soldier of the party. As soon as I receive the notice, I will send my reply to the party leadership within the stipulated time period,” he was quoted as saying.

The controversy follows Meena’s resignation from his ministerial post after the BJP’s underwhelming performance in the Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan.

On July 4, during a religious event in Jaipur, he informed the media about his resignation, stating that he had sent it to the chief minister in June, but it was not accepted. Despite stepping back from cabinet meetings, Meena continued handling departmental work as a minister.