Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has buckled under US pressure to finalise a trade deal and has “sold out” the hard work of Indian farmers through the agreement.
Addressing reporters in the Parliament House complex after he was not allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha while insisting on quoting from an article citing former Army chief M. M. Naravane’s unpublished memoir, Rahul said it was the first time in history that the leader of the Opposition had not been allowed to speak on the President’s address.
“We need to understand why a trade deal stuck for about four months was suddenly finalised last evening,” the Congress leader said, adding that “there was huge pressure on Prime Minister Modi”.
Asked what kind of pressure he was referring to, Rahul alleged that there is a case against industrialist Gautam Adani in the US and that a lot more is yet to come in the Epstein files.
He alleged that Prime Minister Modi “has been compromised” and said Indian farmers must understand that their hard work “as well as their blood and sweat” has been “sold out” through the India-US trade deal.
He also claimed that the entire country had been “sold out”.
“Indian farmers must understand that PM Modi has sold out their hard work through trade deals with the US. PM Modi is scared. He agreed to deal under pressure,” he said.
The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 3 pm on Tuesday amid a standoff over Rahul Gandhi’s attempt to quote from the article during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address.
Rahul Gandhi cited the Speaker’s ruling from Monday and authenticated a copy of the article as soon as he was allowed to speak. “I have authenticated it,” he said, submitting a signed copy as required under parliamentary rules.
To authenticate a document, a member has to submit a signed copy affirming that it is correct to the best of his knowledge. Krishna Prasad Tenneti, who was chairing the House, asked Gandhi to table the document and said, “we will examine it and get back”.
Tenneti asked him to table the document and said, “we will examine it and get back”. With BJP MPs objecting to Rahul Gandhi raising the issue, Tenneti adjourned the House till 3 pm.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said, “A very important matter in the President's speech is a matter relating to national security. Our relationship between the Pakistanis, the Chinese, and us. There is a very important point in this article that I have authenticated. It speaks about the PM's reaction. Our President's address was about the path India has to take. Today. On the world stage, the main issue in international affairs is the conflict between China and the US. This is central to our President's address. All I am saying is let me make a statement about what happened between China and India and how our PM reacted to it. Why am I being stopped?”
BJP MPs objected to Gandhi speaking on China during the debate, leading to repeated disruptions.
The controversy follows Monday’s uproar when Gandhi sought to quote from the former Army chief’s unpublished memoir on the 2020 India-China conflict. Defence minister Rajnath Singh and other BJP leaders accused him of misleading the House. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla disallowed the reference.
Inside the House, Rahul Gandhi said, “The Speaker had said to present it according to rule, Now, I want this article to be authenticated. As I said yesterday, a very important matter in the President’s speech is national security, and our relationships with China, and Pakistan. This is an important issue that is quoted in this article.”
He added, “I am the Leader of the Opposition in this country, and you are not granting me the permission I am entitled to.”
BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia posted on X: “Congress Must Remember that In India, No One Is Above Parliamentary Rules. Rahul Gandhi may have held the Constitution in his hand, but he must understand that neither he nor his family is above the Constitution, Parliament, or its rulebook, especially the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the Lok Sabha. Despite this, Rahul Gandhi continued to insist on proceeding. This raises a serious question: If the Speaker’s rulings and parliamentary rules are ignored, how can the dignity of Parliament be upheld?”
Another BJP spokesperson, C. R. Kesavan, said, “Rahul Gandhi is completely clueless and directionless. He neither understands parliamentary procedures nor respects our democratic traditions. India, the largest democracy in the world, definitely deserves a better Leader of Opposition, not a Leader of Pandemonium and Propaganda, like the incompetent Rahul Gandhi.”
