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Gandhi versus Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) broke out in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday over former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished 'memoir', citation of which in the House was the reason of a massive ruckus on Monday as well. Eight Congress MPs were suspended on Tuesday over “unruly behaviour”.
The unpublished memoir in question pertains to the content of an article in Caravan magazine on former army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane’s account that seemed to suggest that the political leadership appeared indecisive during the face-off between India and China in 2020.
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Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday authenticated a copy of an article in the House which cited former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished 'memoir'.
Also Read | Letter to speaker, 8 MPs suspended: Chaos in Lok Sabha as Rahul Gandhi vs BJP continues over Naravane memoir
To authenticate a document, a member has to submit a signed copy of it affirming that it is correct to the best of his knowledge.
{{/usCountry}}To authenticate a document, a member has to submit a signed copy of it affirming that it is correct to the best of his knowledge.
{{/usCountry}}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.
"I have authenticated it," he said.
Krishna Prasad Tenneti, who was chairing the House asked him to table it and said "we will examine it and get back".
‘What is this yaar’ adds fuel to fire
As the impasse continued, 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.
Speaking to reporters later, Tenneti said his objection to the use of “yaar” was justified by the opposition leaders by questioning what was wrong in the usage of the term.
"When I was in the chair, somebody from the opposition was calling the chair as "yaar" which is objectionable in any house of representatives. I pointed out that. The response I got is, what is wrong in saying "yaar"... In continuation of that, some of them came to the table and started tearing papers and throwing, which is again objectionable. This is not the behaviour one is expected to exhibit in the House of Parliament...," Tenneti, a TDP MP, said.
The ruckus in Lok Sabha over the unpublished memoir has been spilled over from Monday, when Gandhi sought to quote it on the 2020 India-China conflict, but faced strong opposition from defence minister Rajnath Singh and other BJP members who accused the Congress leader of misleading the House.
ALSO READ | ‘This is not me’: Rahul Gandhi clears the air on ex-army chief MM Naravane memoir reference row
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla refused to allow Rahul Gandhi from raising the issue, however, the Congress leader did not relent and was rallied behind by several other opposition leaders.
The House was adjourned twice and later for the day amid uproar as heated exchanges took place between the treasury and opposition benches.