Calcutta, May 25: Planning and development minister Rachhpal Singh today got his security guard to tie the shoelaces for him, giving the Opposition another opportunity to criticise the Mamata Banerjee government and prompting a Trinamul leader to concede "he should have been careful".

The minister, who was given the responsibility of garlanding the portrait of sculptor Ramkinkar Baij on his birth anniversary at the state secretariat, arrived around 12.15pm when only a handful of officials from the information and cultural affairs department were present.

Singh, a former IPS officer, joined Trinamul before the 2011 Assembly elections.

"After the programme was over, the minister walked towards the door. His security guard was standing there. The minister stood at his place and asked the guard to tie the shoelaces for him. We have never seen such a thing in the secretariat before," a senior official of the information and cultural affairs department said.

Singh walked out of the room within minutes. Officials said the room did not have a footrest or a chair on which a well-built Singh could have rested his foot to tie the shoelaces.

"There were a few flower pots outside the room though," a Nabanna official said.

Guards for state ministers are usually assigned from among members of Calcutta police's special branch.

In spite of repeated attempts, 70-year-old Singh could not be contacted on phone to ascertain whether he suffered from any medical condition that required assistance in carrying out tasks such as tying shoelaces.

The incident sparked a protest by the Opposition.

At the Assembly, CPM MLA Anisur Rahman requested Parash Dutta, who was officiating in the absence of Speaker Biman Banerjee, for a discussion on the issue while the public health engineering department budget was being discussed.

Minister Subrata Mukherjee immediately stepped in to save the government's face.

"In the absence of a minister, any issue related to the individual concerned cannot be discussed. A notice has to be served first," Mukherjee said.

The discussion was turned down.

Trinamul insiders said though Mukherjee's timely intervention stopped the Opposition from getting the issue recorded in the Assembly, the incident in Nabanna could have been avoided.

"This is an unnecessary controversy. The footage is being aired continuously. Singh should have been careful," a senior Trinamul leader said.

BJP MLA Samik Bhattacharya also criticised Singh.

"Singh has forgotten that he is a public representative and a minister," he said.

Forward Bloc MLA Udayan Guha echoed Bhattacharya.

Mamata had started the practice of observing the birth anniversaries of luminaries, especially from Bengal, after coming to power. In her initial days, she used to attend most of the events but has now started assigning her ministers with such responsibilities.

"In the past too, the chief minister had chided him (Singh) for wearing shoes while paying homage. Possibly, he did not want to risk the chief minister's anger this time," a source said.

Trinamul insiders said Mamata was strict about the appearance of ministers and officials during such events.

"On one occasion, Didi had publicly criticised minister Malay Ghatak when he forgot to remove his shoes. She made him remove his shoes before paying tribute," a minister said.

In the past too, controversial footages have rocked Trinamul though the party managed to wriggle out of the situation.

MP Tapas Paul's controversial "rape-and-shoot" speech made in a village in his constituency went viral, leaving the party red-faced.