Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: The Parliament witnessed a major showdown on Monday, a day after the Union Budget was presented, as Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi rose to speak during the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address. Quoting from the unpublished memoir of former Army chief General MM Naravane, Rahul’s remarks triggered a fiery exchange in the Lower House during the Budget Session, in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.As Rahul Gandhi began his address, Union home minister Amit Shah and defence minister Rajnath Singh immediately objected, arguing that unpublished material could not be cited in the House under parliamentary rules.After the Speaker ruled against him quoting from a magazine article that carried excerpts from the unpublished memoir, Rahul questioned the objections, saying, “What does it contain which is scaring them so much? If they are not scared, I should be allowed to read on,” after raising issues related to China.Responding to repeated interventions by Shah and Rajnath Singh, as well as the Speaker’s rulings, the Lok Sabha LoP sought to justify his reference to the memoir. He said, “The defence minister, home minister and the Prime Minister raise questions on our party, party leaders, and our nationalism. This article writes about the PM’s character…This is neither about China, nor the PM…”Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju later joined the debate, countering Rahul’s remarks. He said, “The Speaker has given a ruling that articles from magazines or newspapers cannot be quoted in the House…Debate in the House should be held according to the laws.”After being repeatedly interrupted by senior ministers, Rahul Gandhi maintained that his references to Naravane’s memoir were “100 percent authentic”.Earlier in the day, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, while seconding the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address, described the Congress-led UPA government’s tenure from 2004 to 2014 as a “decade of lost opportunities” and a “narrative of excuses” for failing on multiple fronts. He said the contrast between “weak leadership” and “great leadership” clearly differentiated the Congress and the BJP.
