Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the government in the Lok Sabha of having “bartered” to the US India’s right to decide on purchasing oil from global suppliers.
Speaker Om Birla, who returned to preside over proceedings amid chants of “Jai Shri Ram” from BJP members after having survived the Opposition’s no-confidence motion, cut Rahul short, saying the Congress leader was deviating from the notice submitted on the LPG crisis.
The move triggered protests from Opposition members, who trooped into the Well and raised slogans. Birla had earlier recused himself from presiding over the House after the Opposition submitted a no-confidence notice against him on February 10 over his alleged partisan way of functioning and his repeated refusal to allow Rahul to speak.
Rahul’s microphone was switched off on Thursday when he attempted to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi and petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri by referring to certain declassified files in the US.
“Speak on the subject for which you have given notice. You are the honourable Leader of Opposition, I urge you to speak on the subject. I will not permit you to speak beyond the notice,” Birla told Rahul amid an uproar, stressing that the “rules and procedures” of the House must be followed.
Opposition members rushed to the Well, raising slogans and referring to the mention of Puri’s name in
the declassified US files,
forcing a brief adjournment
of the House.
“There is an energy crisis in the country. Our petroleum minister is completely compromised. This is what Rahul Gandhi tried to mention in the House with evidence…. Now he will tell the truth to the people. No one can stop Rahul Gandhi from speaking the truth,” Congress MP K.C. Venugopal told reporters outside Parliament.
Earlier in the day, as Birla returned to preside over the Lok Sabha, he delivered a lengthy address thanking members for reposing faith in him and asserting his commitment to conduct proceedings strictly in accordance with established rules.
“Some members believe that the leader of Opposition may stand at any time and speak on any subject of their choice as a special privilege. I wish to clarify that the House functions according to rules framed by the House itself…. No honourable member in this House possesses any privilege to speak outside the framework of these rules,” Birla said, in an apparent reference to the charge levelled by Rahul.
Rahul on Thursday cautioned that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz would have serious repercussions for India. “The pain has just started — restaurants are closing, there is widespread panic about LPG, street vendors are affected and, as I said, this is only the beginning,” he said.
Stressing that the foundation of any nation is its energy security, Rahul referred to a statement from the US about “allowing” India to buy Russian oil due to the crisis in West Asia.
“I do not say this lightly, but allowing the US to decide who we buy oil and gas from — whether we buy oil from Russia or not, whether our relationship with different oil suppliers can be decided by us — this is what has been bartered,” he said, describing it as a “puzzle”.
