Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reply to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s address in the Lok Sabha could not be delivered on Wednesday after repeated adjournments triggered by sustained protests from Opposition parties.
The disruption followed an ongoing standoff between the Treasury benches and the Opposition over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s demand to speak on what he described as national security concerns linked to the unpublished memoirs of former Army chief General M.M. Naravane.
Congress leaders alleged that the Prime Minister chose not to address the House due to the turmoil. Rahul Gandhi claimed PM Modi “backed out because he was scared”, an allegation echoed by his sister and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who said the Prime Minister was “too scared to enter Parliament”.
The ruckus in the House has continued since Tuesday, when eight Opposition MPs were suspended following protests. Tensions escalated further on Wednesday after BJP MP Nishikant Dubey referred to a series of books critical of the Gandhi family while objecting to Rahul Gandhi’s attempt to cite an unpublished book.
Presiding over the House, Krishna Prasad Tenneti said he could not permit references to books under Rule 349, which bars members from reading from any book, newspaper or letter unless it relates directly to House business. Despite the warning, Dubey continued his remarks, prompting strong protests from Opposition MPs and forcing another adjournment.
What Rahul Gandhi said
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi said he intended to present a copy of General Naravane’s memoir to the Prime Minister, claiming it exposed how political leadership left the armed forces to act alone during the 2020 border crisis with China.
“Today, if the Prime Minister comes to Parliament, I will present him with a book. This book is written by the country’s former Army Chief, General Naravane,” Gandhi said in a post on X, alleging that the government was denying the existence of the memoirs to avoid discussion on national security.
Gandhi has maintained that he was deliberately prevented from speaking and said he had written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday protesting the suspension of eight Opposition MPs for the remainder of the session.
After it became clear that the Prime Minister would not speak, Gandhi posted again on X, reiterating his claim that PM Modi was avoiding Parliament “because he does not want to face the truth”.
Protests through the day
Lok Sabha proceedings were first adjourned till 2 pm amid loud protests over the issue. Following the adjournment, Congress MPs staged a demonstration outside Parliament, demanding that Rahul Gandhi be allowed to participate in the debate on the President’s address.
The House remained disrupted through the day, with no clarity on when the Prime Minister’s reply would be rescheduled.
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