Sachin Tendulkar and Rekha, both Members of Parliament, vote during the Vice Presidential elections at Parliament in New Delhi on August 7, 2012
Sachin Tendulkar today said a medical emergency in his family kept him from Parliament, after several MPs criticised his poor attendance.
"My elder brother underwent bypass surgery and I had to be by his side. I don't disrespect any institution," said the cricket legend who has rarely attended Parliament since he became a Rajya Sabha member in 2012.
Earlier today, members in Rajya Sabha raised the absence of Sachin and actor Rekha and called it unacceptable.
"Sachin attended the house just for three days. Rekha came just seven days," CPI member P Rajeev said, citing a rule that says if a member is absent for 60 days, his seat can be declared "vacant".
Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien replied that Sachin had been absent for 40 days and Rekha even less. "Both Sachin and Rekha are yet to cross that threshold. No violation of the Constitution has occurred," he said.
Celebrity parliamentarians are notorious for their poor attendance. But Sachin Tendulkar probably has the worst record of all.
The 41-year-old master blaster, who retired in November, has not attended a single session of Parliament this year. He has also not participated in any debates in the House so far.
An embarrassed Congress, which nominated Sachin and Rekha to the Upper House, said both members have been spoken to.
"They should attend Parliament more frequently, but Sachin and Rekha have not taken a single MP privilege. Next week, Rekha is coming," Congress leader Rajeev Shukla said.
When Sachin was sworn in as a member of the Rajya Sabha in June, 2012, he had promised to champion the development of sports in India.
Poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar, a fellow Rajya Sabha member, remarked, "Membership is not a trophy that he took it and went. He has a responsibility and should come."
The Nationalist Congress Party's DP Tripathi said, "As a cricketer I admire Sachin Tendulkar and Rekhaji as an actor. But their absence in Parliament is not at all acceptable."