Eight Opposition MPs were suspended from the Lok Sabha on Tuesday amid repeated disruptions after leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi attempted to refer to excerpts from a book by former army chief Manoj Naravane, plunging the House into chaos for the second straight day.
The suspensions followed protests by the Congress and other Opposition members after Rahul was prevented from even referring to the unpublished book while speaking on the motion of thanks to the President’s address. As the Speaker skipped Rahul and called on other members to speak, Opposition MPs rushed into the Well, climbed on the secretary-general’s podium, tore papers and shouted slogans, forcing an adjournment.
When the House reassembled, eight MPs were accused of “misconduct” and “utter disregard” of the Chair’s authority and suspended for the remainder of the session by a voice vote. They include Congress MPs Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Hibi Eden, Dean Kuriakose, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, C. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Manickam Tagore and Prashant Padole, and the CPM’s S. Venkatesan.
Rahul later wrote to Speaker Om Birla protesting that his right to speak had been denied at the government’s behest, calling it a “blot on our democracy”. He argued that parliamentary convention allowed a member to refer to a document after authenticating it, and said he had tabled and authenticated a magazine article based on Naravane’s book.
“Hon’ble Speaker, as the impartial custodian of the House, it is your constitutional and parliamentary responsibility to safeguard the rights of every member, including those of the Opposition. The right of the leader of the Opposition and each member to speak is integral to our democracy,” Rahul’s letter said.
It added: “The refusal of these basic democratic rights has led to an unprecedented situation. For the first time in parliamentary history, on the behest of the government, the Speaker has been forced to prevent the leader of the Opposition from speaking on the President’s address. This is a blot on our democracy, against which I record my strongest protest.”
Trouble started after Rahul was called to speak at 2pm, and he began by referring to the magazine article based on Naravane’s book. Rahul said that, in keeping with the rules, he was ready to authenticate the article published in the magazine and subsequently tabled a copy of the magazine.
In his letter to the Speaker, Rahul mentioned this authentication. “By long-standing convention, including repeated rulings of past Speakers, a member who wishes to refer to a document in the House is required to authenticate it and affirm responsibility for its contents. Once this requirement is fulfilled, the Speaker allows the member to quote or refer to the document. Thereafter, it becomes the responsibility of the government to respond, and the role of the Chair stands concluded,” he said.
“Preventing me from speaking… not only violates this convention, but also gives rise to a serious concern that there is a deliberate attempt to prevent me… from speaking on matters of national security,” he added.
In the House, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said Rahul could not refer to the magazine article despite authenticating it because the Speaker had on Monday passed a ruling against making any reference to the article based on an unpublished book.
Rahul argued that he should be allowed to speak on the issue (of India-China relations) without quoting the book. “I am not allowed to speak. I am the leader of the Opposition, am I to take permission to speak?” he said amid an uproar.
The Chair urged him to continue, but speak only on the President’s address.
“The President’s speech lays stress on India’s direction in the future…. The main issue on the international stage today is the conflict between China and the US…. In eastern Ladakh, there was a conflict and our soldiers were killed,” Rahul said, but was stopped again.
The Chair skipped Rahul and started calling the names of other speakers. At this juncture, the Congress and other Opposition MPs rose in protest and rushed into the Well. Chaos ensued as slogan-shouting Congress MPs climbed on the secretary-general’s podium and tore papers, accusing the government of gagging the Opposition’s voice.
Amid the pandemonium, the House was adjourned till 3pm. When it reassembled, the Chair accused the eight Opposition MPs of “misconduct”. Amid the ruckus, Rijiju moved a resolution for their suspension that was passed by a voice vote. The House was then adjourned for the day.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged the India-US trade deal on Monday was announced at Modi’s request as a diversionary tactic. “In his Truth Social post late last night, President Trump wrote that the India-US trade deal was being announced and coming into effect immediately at Mr Modi’s request. That request was no doubt made to create diversionary headlines because his cowardice and capitulation to China had been exposed by Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha yesterday afternoon,” Ramesh wrote on X.