- Rahul Gandhi wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla alleging that he was deliberately prevented from speaking
- Gandhi was barred from reading excerpts of an unpublished book by ex-Army chief General MM Naravane
- The issue led to the suspension of eight Opposition MPs and adjournment of the House
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi has written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, suggesting that he was deliberately stopped from speaking in response to President's address, and called it a "blot on democracy".
"Preventing me from speaking in the Lok Sabha today... gives rise to a serious concern that there is a deliberate attempt to prevent me, in my capacity as the Leader of the Opposition, from speaking on matters of national security," he wrote.
"It is worth repeating that national security was a key part of the President's Address, which requires a discussion in Parliament," he wrote.
Gandhi was not allowed to read out excerpts from an unpublished book by former Army chief General MM Naravane for the second consecutive day today. The sections he wanted to focus on included the India-China military stand-off in Ladakh in 2020.
The matter escalated to the point that the house had to be adjourned and eight Opposition MPs were suspended for the rest of the winter session.
Gandhi mentioned the events in detail, saying "Yesterday, while speaking on the Motion on the President's Address, you directed me to authenticate a magazine that I intended to refer to. I authenticated the document while resuming my speech today".
"By long-standing convention, including repeated rulings of past Speakers, a Member who wishes to refer to a document in the House is required to authenticate it and affirm responsibility for its contents. Once this requirement is fulfilled, the Speaker allows the Member to quote or refer to the document. Thereafter, it becomes the responsibility of the Government to respond, and the role of the Chair stands concluded," he added.
"Hon'ble Speaker, as the impartial custodian of the House, it is your Constitutional and Parliamentary responsibility to safeguard the rights of every Member, including those of the Opposition. The right of the Leader of the Opposition and of each Member to speak is integral to our democracy," the letter read.
Later, Gandhi told reporters that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was "too afraid" to let him speak in Parliament about Naravane's unpublished memoir and the Epstein files.
"PM Modi is Compromised. PM is too afraid to let me speak in Parliament about Naravane, Epstein Files and how he has surrendered on Tariffs," Gandhi also posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
