Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi triggered controversy in the Lok Sabha on Monday, attempting to read out excerpts from a book by former army chief Manoj Naravane, prompting senior Treasury MPs to object that an unpublished work could not be cited in the House.
Rahul said some excerpts had already appeared in a magazine report and asked what the Treasury benches were “afraid of”, but the ruling side refused to budge.
The Congress MP’s microphone was switched off whenever he referred to the book, triggering uproar. The standoff led to multiple adjournments before the House was adjourned for the day.
The Centre had withheld permission for the publication of Naravane’s book, which apparently refers to the 2020 border standoff with China — including the Galwan Valley clash in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed — and the contentious Agnipath recruitment scheme.
What the controversial parts were that Rahul wanted to cite remained unclear, and he did not reveal it while speaking to the media after the proceedings, either.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh had intervened soon after Rahul began his speech during the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s address. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in the House.
“He should tell the House whether the said book has been published or not. He should present the book here. I can say with confidence that it has not been published,” Rajnath said.
“Under no circumstances should the leader of the Opposition be allowed to speak on this issue in the House.”
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh speaks in the Lok Sabha during the Budget session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. PTI
Home minister Amit Shah, too, weighed in saying: “A magazine can write anything. When the book has not been published, how can he refer to it?”
Rahul remained defiant even after Speaker Om Birla invoked Rule 349 and directed him not to refer to newspaper clippings, books or other material unrelated to House proceedings.
Birla repeatedly urged him to confine his remarks to the President’s address, underlining that it made no reference to India-China relations.
Rahul argued he was raising a matter of “national security” and said he had been compelled to refer to the former army chief’s memoirs after BJP member Tejasvi Surya, who had spoken before him, questioned the Congress’s patriotism.
Holding up a photocopy of the magazine article, Rahul said: “This is from the memoirs of a former army chief…. You will understand who is patriotic and who is not.”
The Youth Congress posted images of portions of the magazine report which, referring to the book, suggested the government had during a tense episode of the Ladakh standoff of 2020 passed the onus to the army to decide how to respond.
PTI had in December 2023 released purported excerpts from the book that claimed the Agniveer scheme (of temporary recruitment, launched by the Modi government), had come as a surprise to the army and as a “bolt from the blue” to the navy and air force.
Sources said any material relating to national security required government permission for publication, particularly when authored by someone who has held a sensitive position.
Last December, Naravane had said the manuscript had been submitted by the publishers to the defence ministry and was still under review.
“My job was to write the book and give it to the publishers. It was the publishers who were to get the permission from the ministry ofdefence. It is under review — for more than a year now,” he had said.
After the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day, Rahul told reporters he had merely referred to what Naravane had written.
“The book is not being allowed to be published. It is languishing. Why are they so scared of the (former) army chief’s perspective? Why are they so scared of what the army chief has to say?” he said.
Rahul claimed the book would reveal uncomfortable truths about the political leadership.
“We will learn something about the Prime Minister and about Rajnath Singhji, but also about the army and how it was let down by the political leadership,” he said.
“They are scared because if it comes out, the reality of Narendra Modi and Rajnath Singh will be revealed to the people and what happened to the 56-inch chest when China was advancing.”
Earlier in the House, Rajnath had said: “If Naravane was stopped from publication, he could have gone to court. If the facts were right, why hasn’t he approached the court?”
But Rahul continued to raise the issue, saying he would avoid directly reading out the excerpts. He made oblique references to border developments, prompting the Treasury benches to protest loudly.
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju accused Rahul of defyingparliamentary rules and attempting to demoralise the armed forces.
“You want to show the country in a bad light. What benefit will you get?” Rijiju said, urging the Chair to stop Rahul from speaking.
Amid the uproar, the House was adjourned till 3pm. When proceedings resumed, Rahul again tried to raise the issue, prompting Rajnath to accuse him of misleading the House.
Rijiju reiterated that Rahul’s remarks could damage the national interest and demoralise the armed forces, leading to further disruptions.
Sources said the Treasury benches might bring a condemnation motion against Rahul before the House on Tuesday for defying the ruling of the Chair.