Rahul Gandhi told Lok Sabha that Opposition members are often stopped from speaking, saying the House represents the entire country and raising concerns about the democratic process.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi speaks in the House during a discussion on parliamentary functioning. | ANI
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said he had been repeatedly prevented from speaking in the House, sparking sharp exchanges with BJP members during a heated debate on the no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla.
Intervening during BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad’s remarks, Gandhi said his attempts to raise key issues in Parliament had been blocked several times.
Advertisement
“The discussion here is about the democratic process and the role of the Speaker. Multiple times my name has been raised and wild things have been said about me,” Gandhi said in the House.
Advertisement
He added that Parliament represents the voice of the people of India and not just one political party.
“This House is the expression of the people of India. It does not represent one party, but the whole country. Every time we get up to speak, we are stopped from speaking,” he said.
Gandhi said the last time he spoke in the Lok Sabha, he had raised what he called a “fundamental question” about alleged compromises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
As the debate continued, Gandhi again said he had been interrupted in the past when raising certain issues in the House.
“I was stopped multiple times. Last time I raised the issue of the PM being compromised. I raised the issue of Mr Naravane. I raised the issue of Epstein. I was silenced. Our PM has been compromised, and everyone knows,” he said.
Responding to the remarks, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad rejected the allegation.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi could “never be compromised” and questioned whether such claims could be raised during a point of order.
Prasad also criticised the Opposition’s no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla and asked why the issue had been raised.
“I do not understand this motion. The book which never got published was circulated. How can anyone authenticate it?” he said, referring to claims linked to former Army Chief General MM Naravane’s unpublished memoir.
The BJP leader also urged the Opposition not to turn parliamentary proceedings into a platform for what he called the “ego of a leader”.
The no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla was moved by Congress MP Mohammad Jawed and supported by more than 50 MPs. According to parliamentary records, 118 Opposition members have signed the resolution, accusing the Speaker of “partisan behaviour”.
The motion follows earlier tensions in the House. On February 2, during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address, Gandhi had attempted to cite excerpts from an unpublished memoir of former Army Chief General Naravane. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had objected, saying the book had not been authenticated.
Advertisement
