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In a first since 2004, Lok Sabha approves President speech without PM's reply
Opposition MPs raised the issue of the alleged denial of the right to speak to Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the lower house.
In what was the first such instance since 2004, the Lok Sabha on Thursday approved President Droupadi Murmu's address to a joint sitting of Parliament during the Budget Session without the Prime Minister's reply to her speech.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to reply to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address on Wednesday. However, after repeated disruptions and sloganeering by opposition members, the Speaker adjourned the Lok Sabha. Follow live updates here.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla read out the Motion of Thanks to the President for her address to the joint sitting of Parliament on January 28. The motion was cleared through a voice vote, even as opposition members raised slogans.
With the protests showing no sign of easing, the Speaker adjourned the House till 2:00 PM.
Ruckus in Lok Sabha
On Thursday, the Lok Sabha sitting, which began at 11 am, was adjourned soon after INDIA bloc MPs raised slogans targeting PM Modi and the Centre.
Opposition MPs raised the issue of the alleged denial of the right to speak to Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the lower house.
The Opposition has been protesting against the Centre for allegedly preventing Rahul Gandhi from addressing the lower house and being able to quote General MM Naravane’s unpublished memoir on the 2020 China standoff in the Parliament.
The standoff between the government and the opposition in the Lok Sabha escalated on Tuesday after eight Congress members were suspended for unruly conduct for the rest of the Budget session.
What happened in 2004?
In 2004, the BJP stopped then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from responding to the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared a video on X of Singh’s address from March 10, 2005.
In the clip, the former prime minister refers to the June 10, 2004 episode when he was not allowed to reply to the Motion of Thanks.
