The Lok Sabha descended into noisy scenes on Monday as members clashed over Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi, citing what he said were excerpts from an unpublished memoir of former Army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane during his reply to the motion of thanks on the President’s address.
As Gandhi began referring to a magazine story that allegedly carried passages from the unpublished book, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh objected strongly.
“I want that LoP, Lok Sabha (Rahul Gandhi), should present before the House the book he is quoting from, because the book he is referring to has not been published,” Singh said, questioning the authenticity of the material.
Home Minister Amit Shah also intervened, asking Gandhi whether the book he was citing had been published.
Speaker Birla asks LoP Gandhi to refrain
Amid the uproar, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla ruled that the LoP should restrict himself to the subject of the President’s address and refrain from quoting from a magazine story or unpublished work.
“The Speaker has given a ruling that articles from magazines or newspapers cannot be quoted in the House... Debate in the House should be held according to the laws,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said, urging Gandhi to follow the Chair’s direction.
'What does it contain which is scaring them so much,' asks Gandhi
Despite the ruling, Gandhi attempted to continue, linking his remarks to concerns about China and India’s security posture.
“What does it contain which is scaring them so much? If they are not scared, I should be allowed to read on,” he said after being stopped from quoting the magazine article.
Backing Gandhi, Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav argued that the issue went beyond procedural technicalities.
“The matter relating to China is very sensitive. LoP, Lok Sabha should be allowed to speak,” Yadav said, recalling that past leaders had repeatedly warned about Beijing’s intentions.
Gandhi, in turn, accused senior ministers of questioning the Opposition’s patriotism.
“The Defence Minister, Home Minister, and the Prime Minister raise questions on our party, party leaders, and our nationalism. This article writes about the PM's character... This is neither about China, nor the PM...” he said, before being interrupted again.
At that point, the Speaker objected and called the next speaker, Akhilesh Yadav, bringing Gandhi’s remarks to an abrupt halt.
Doklam stand-off, House adjourned
The controversy unfolded against the backdrop of continuing sensitivity over the 2017 Doklam stand-off, when Indian and Chinese troops faced off after the People’s Liberation Army attempted to build a road on the Doklam plateau in Bhutan.
Government members maintained that parliamentary rules must be followed strictly, regardless of the subject matter. Rijiju went further, saying, “We should also discuss what should be done with a member who doesn't obey the Speaker's ruling in Lok Sabha,” as Gandhi continued to raise the unlisted issue of China.
Shah sought to counter Gandhi’s claim that the government had questioned the Opposition’s character. “Tejasvi Surya (BJP MP) in his speech has not raised any questions on the Opposition's character or their patriotism...” he said.
With repeated interruptions and Opposition benches trading accusations, the House was adjourned till 3 pm.
Behind-the-scenes meetings, renewed clash
During the adjournment, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge met Rahul Gandhi in his chamber at Parliament. Party MPs K C Venugopal and Shashi Tharoor were also present. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attended the meeting as well.
Separately, Shah, Singh, Rijiju, and Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal met Speaker Om Birla in his chamber.
When the House resumed, Gandhi again stood up and began speaking about China, referring to howthe Indian Army and Chinese troops were facing each other on the Kailash ridge. Rajnath Singh, Rijiju, Anurag Thakur, and Meghwal objected, saying he was defying the Speaker’s earlier ruling.
Birla said that since Gandhi was not abiding by the Chair’s direction, the House was adjourned again.
After resuming at 3 pm, the House adjourned till 4 pm
When proceedings resumed at 4 pm, BJP MP Jagdambika Pal was in the Speaker’s chair and allowed Rahul Gandhi to speak. Before resumption of House proceedings as Speaker, Pal spoke to news agency ANI and criticised Gandhi saying "action should be taken against them."
Pal said, "this must have happened for the first time since Independance that someone was asked to stop doing the same thing five times." He accused Gandhi of having "planned to do this (raising Doklam issue) and dubbed his address to be "embarrassing and condemnable."
As the House resume, Gandhi once again raised the China issue. As Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi spoke in support of Gandhi, Pal said that as an MP, he knew parliamentary propriety and procedure, and asked Gandhi why he could not speak on issues mentioned in the President’s address, such as roads, transport, and development.
Gandhi responded that national security was the most important issue for him and that he understood why the Prime Minister and Defence Minister would be uncomfortable, but he should be allowed to raise the matter.
Gandhi also said the Home Minister and Defence Minister had “escaped”, prompting Rijiju to object that Gandhi was using language "as if they had escaped from jail". Gandhi retorted, asking how the word “bhagna” was unparliamentary, and continued attempting to speak on China.
Amid the renewed uproar, the Lok Sabha was adjourned to meet again at 11 am tomorrow.
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