Tempers flared in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday between BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi as the House resumed debate on the opposition’s no-confidence motion against Speaker Om Birla.
It began when Gandhi interrupted Prasad’s speech, alleging that he had repeatedly been prevented from raising issues related to Prime Minister Narendra. He said, “I was stopped multiple times from speaking in the Lok Sabha.
Last time I raised the issue of the PM being compromised, a reference to the India-US trade deal and excerpts from a book by former Army chief General MM Naravane (retired), I raised the issue of Epstein. I was silenced. Our PM has been compromised, and everyone knows,” Gandhi said.
Responding to the remarks, Prasad pushed back strongly and defended the prime minister, stating, “I would like to remind the LoP that the Prime Minister of India can never be compromised...”
The former Union minister also questioned the credibility of Gandhi’s claims, pointing to the disputed source Gandhi had cited.
Ravi Shankar Prasad then questioned the no-confidence motion against Om Birla, which was brought by the Opposition, accusing the speaker of "partisan behaviour" and not allowing Rahul Gandhi to speak.
"I do not understand this motion. Gaurav Gogoi asked what the issue was in quoting the book. The book, which never got published, circulated. How can anyone authenticate it?"
He urged the Opposition not to use parliament proceedings to satisfy the "ego of a leader".
"Let the instrument of opposition against the speaker not be weaponised to satisfy the ego of a leader," he said.
The motion against Birla was moved by Congress MP Mohammad Jawed after Gandhi attempted, during the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s Address, to quote from Naravane’s unpublished memoir. The book includes a chapter on the 2020 Ladakh skirmishes with China. Members of the ruling benches objected, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh noting that the book had neither been published nor authenticated.
BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, who was in the Chair, granted leave to move the motion and announced that 10 hours had been allotted for debate, and asked MPs to stick to the resolution. He said that the Speaker was generous with the permissions and procedure for the Opposition resolution.
A total of 118 Opposition MPs signed the resolution, alleging "partisan behaviour" by the Speaker.
