New Delhi: The BJP today took objection to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's absence from Parliament. Singh is on an official visit to Singapore to attend the ASEAN Summit.

Senior BJP leader V K Malhotra raised the issue during Question Hour when questions pertaining to ministries handled by the Prime Minister were being discussed.

"Parliament is in session for barely 14 days and the Prime Minister is away for seven days," Malhotra said in the Lok Sabha. Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee told the House that the Prime Minister had informed him about the visit and he had granted him permission to stay away from the proceedings.

Questions related to Departments of Atomic Energy and Space, Ministries of Coal, and Environment and Forests, which are handled by the Prime Minister, were in the list of Starred Questions today.

Singh is also scheduled to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala (Uganda) during the session period.

Source : PTI