New Delhi: Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi said that for the first time in the history of Parliament, he was not allowed to speak (during discussion of the President’s speech) earlier in the Budget session, and alleged that the government has been compromised.
Even when Gandhi did not deliver a full speech, he exercised his right of reply after BJP spokesmen repeatedly mentioned his name during the discussion on the no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla.
Gandhi said: “Many times, my name is raised, while things are said about me… This House is an expression of the people of India. This House does not represent one party, this House represents the entire country. Every time we rise to speak, we are prevented from speaking several times.”
But as soon as he claimed that the government was compromised, protests broke out in the BJP seat. Referring to his efforts in raising the issue of former Army chief Manoj Naravane’s unpublished book and the Epstein files, Gandhi said: “I have been silenced. These issues are fundamental to the people of India.”
“When the President, the guardian of the rights of every member of this House, ceased to be an impartial arbiter, the Opposition had no option but to take such a step,” Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal, in his defense of Gandhi, said.
Venugopal also alleged “surrender” by the government. “Why has the Indian government completely surrendered to the US? US government officials announce that India is allowed to take oil from Russia for 30 days. Who’s to tell us?
While participating in the discussion, Bihar MP Ravi Shankar Prasad accused the Congress of turning Lok Sabha into chaos and warned against using the no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla as a weapon.
“The opposition, especially the Congress, wants to turn the House into chaos, which will not be accepted. The entire country is looking at Parliament and they have turned it into a joke,” Prasad said while discussing the no-confidence motion.
