Calling the Opposition’s no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla as “spectacle without substance, anarchy disguised as principle”, NDA members on Tuesday targeted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and praised Birla for being impartial and giving opportunities to Opposition MPs to express their views
Initiating the debate on behalf of the Treasury benches, Union Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju quoted former PMs Jawaharlal Nehru and Rajiv Gandhi to reiterate that the decision of the Speaker is final and should be accepted by all members. He also claimed that 50 Opposition MPs “had told him personally that they were not happy with the resolution” against Birla but “had to support it because of political compulsion.”
Targeting Gandhi, Rijiju alleged that he often skips proceedings to go abroad during sessions and leaves after his speech, disregarding the rules of the House, which, he said, shows his “immaturity”. “He never listens to others speak… Have you seen an LoP like this?”, he said, adding that Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra could be a “better” LoP but “wasn’t given a chance by the Congress”.
Rijiju said: “I felt bad when the LoP stood here and said he doesn’t need anyone’s permission to speak in the House. He said it is his right to speak in the House… You may be the PM, minister or LoP. But everyone needs permission from the Speaker to speak in the House. Then, you will say your mic isn’t on.”
Without naming Gandhi, Rijiju said the Congress leader has shown immaturity by hugging PM Modi in the House and also winking at his party colleagues during a serious debate.
The minister quoted statistics to respond to the Opposition’s charge of partisanship against Birla, saying he has given more opportunity to Opposition MPs to ask supplementary questions and to raise matters of public importance. “In the 17th Lok Sabha, there was 97% productivity. In the 18th Lok Sabha, 93.33 percent productivity,” said Rijiju.
“The BJP has never stooped so low,” BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said, recounting earlier incidents in the House. Referring to a confrontation involving Mamata Banerjee when she was an MP, Dubey said she was “harassed in this House by CPM MPs,” and the Opposition, led by L K Advani, had escorted her out of the House. “We didn’t throw papers at the Speaker,” he said, referring to the then Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.
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Training his guns on Gandhi, Dubey said, “They are speaking about LoP’s rights. But from 1947 to 1977 there was no system to choose LoP… Rahul Gandhi… has lost 95 elections… Those born in the Gandhi family are PMs in waiting, not LoPs. It is this desperation that has resulted in this resolution.”
Defending Birla, he said, “He has never done injustice to anyone. Today, if it’s a question of defending his dignity, the entire NDA will stand by him,” he said.
TDP MP Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu termed the motion an attempt to create “a political spectacle and anarchy”. “Like every party, we also have some concerns…but we engage through dialogue, we resolve through cooperation, we don’t design these motions which are designed to fail… we don’t create anarchy and blame the Chair,” he said.
“This motion is a spectacle without substance, anarchy disguised as principle and hypocrisy dressed as accountability; it must be rejected. I request not just NDA members but also INDIA bloc members to vote against this motion,” he said.
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Panchayati Raj Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alleged that the motion was aimed at “placating one particular leader” and a last-resort bid by the Opposition to “put the Speaker under pressure”. “In my opinion, there should be an impeachment motion against the Leader of Opposition instead of the Speaker,” he said.
Union Minister Chirag Paswan said the Opposition had to “resort to the motion” since they have no issues left, given the government’s policies. “All that they could find of importance was this and that too against the Speaker,” he said.
“You talk about your right to talk, but what about your duties? While opposing the PM you started opposing the country,” he said, targeting the Congress for a protest by its youth wing workers at the Global AI Summit.
Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde appreciated Birla for giving “more time” to the Opposition than the Treasury to speak.
