The Parliament witnessed heated scenes on Monday shortly after Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, started his address during the ongoing Parliament Budget Session. The situation escalated after the Congress leader attempted to read excerpts from an unpublished book by former Army Chief General Manoj Naravane and was interrupted Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
As Gandhi began addressing the Motion of Thanks to the President’s speech and quoted from the book, Singh interrupted, asking him to confirm whether the book had actually been published.
Home Minister Amit Shah also joined in and said, “When the book has not even been published, how can he (Rahul) quote from it?”
“Newspaper clippings, books, or other such things that are not authentic cannot be cited in the House,” Shah said, requesting Rahul Gandhi to continue his speech without referencing the book.
Speaker Om Birla supported the ministers’ objections, citing parliamentary rules and conventions.
Rahul Gandhi, however, insisted that The Caravan magazine had “100% genuine” excerpts from the book. “Rajnath ji is mentioned in it,” he said, while fellow Congress MPs urged the Speaker to allow him to quote the article.
Congress MP KC Venugopal added, “They (government) can respond thereafter.”
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey reiterated rules against quoting from books, particularly unpublished ones. Birla emphasised, “Even if it’s published, quoting from any book unrelated to House proceedings is not allowed.”
Speaking in support of the Leader of the Opposition, Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav said that issues related to China are highly sensitive and emphasised that Rahul Gandhi should be allowed to speak on the matter.
Following the objections, the House descended into disorder. Opposition members protested the interruptions, while MPs from the Treasury benches called for strict adherence to parliamentary rules.
After almost 45 minutes of showdown, Parliament was adjourned till 3 pm. After the House was adjourned, Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh also held a meeting with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
