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Letter to speaker, 8 MPs suspended: Chaos in Lok Sabha as Rahul Gandhi vs BJP continues over Naravane memoir
Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday authenticated a copy of an article in the House which cited former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished 'memoir'
A fresh bout of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi versus Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) broke out in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday over former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished 'memoir', citation of which in the House was the reason for a massive ruckus on Monday as well.
The unpublished memoir in question concerns an article in Caravan magazine about former army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane’s account, which seemed to suggest that the political leadership appeared indecisive during the face-off between India and China in 2020.
Gandhi had tried to cite the memoir during his speech in the Lok Sabha on Monday, during a discussion on President Droupadi Murmu’s address. The treasury benches, including defence minister Rajnath Singh and home minister Amit Shah, objected to the citation, citing rule 349 of the parliamentary procedure. Ruckus erupted in the House, leading to two adjournments.
The same ruckus spilt over on Tuesday as well.
Rahul Gandhi vs BJP over ex-army chief’s memoir| Top points
- Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday authenticated a copy of an article in the House which cited former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished 'memoir'. As soon as Gandhi was asked to speak on the Motion of Thanks, he cited the Speaker's ruling of Monday and authenticated the copy of the article.
- Krishna Prasad Tenneti, who was chairing the House, asked him to table it and said, "We will examine it and get back". To authenticate a document, a member must submit a signed copy, affirming that it is correct to the best of his knowledge.
- Krishna Prasad Tenneti was also seen reprimanding the opposition leaders for referring to the Chair as “yaar”. "What did you say just now… what is this yaar… this is Parliament, this is Lok Sabha… you cannot address the Chair with yaar,” Tenneti was heard saying, pointing towards Rahul Gandhi and Congress leader KC Venugopal.
- Amid the ruckus, which even saw papers thrown around on Tuesday, Tenneti adjourned the proceedings till 3 PM. The chaos continued even after that, forcing the House to be adjourned until 11 AM on Wednesday.
- Eight opposition MPs, including seven from Congress, were suspended on Tuesday over “unruly behaviour”. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju moved the motion for suspension of the eight members for the remainder of the budget session for "violating rules and throwing papers on the chair." The motion was adopted by the House amid protests from the opposition members.
- The suspended MPs include Congress members Hibi Eden, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Prashant Yadaorao Padole, Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy and Dean Kuriakose, along with CPI (M) MP S. Venkatesan.
- Rahul Gandhi wrote to Speaker Om Birla alleging that he was denied his democratic right to speak in the Lok Sabha. In the letter, the MP claimed that it was the first time in Parliamentary history that the Speaker was forced to prevent the leader of the opposition from speaking on the President's address at the behest of the government. “This is a blot on our democracy, I record my strongest protest,” he said in the letter.
