New Delhi: During the discussion on the motion of thanks on the President’s address, there was a heated exchange between the ruling and opposition parties. The situation escalated so much over a statement by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya that the Speaker had to adjourn the Lok Sabha proceedings for an hour. Tejasvi had made some remarks about the UPA government, and Rahul Gandhi wanted to respond. However, the Speaker did not allow Rahul Gandhi to refer to the book he wanted to cite. The entire controversy revolves around this. Rahul Gandhi said that Surya had questioned the patriotism and character of the Congress party, and therefore he wanted to read an excerpt from the memoirs of a former Army chief that had been published in a magazine.
Following this, an uproar erupted over a statement by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, in which he wanted to say something about a book by former Army chief Naravane. Members of the ruling party objected to this. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asked whether the book Rahul Gandhi was referring to had even been published. To this, Rahul Gandhi replied that the government itself had not given permission for Naravane’s book to be published. The ruling party responded that if the government had not given permission, it meant that the facts written in it were not on record. Home Minister Amit Shah said that if Rahul Gandhi wanted to quote from a magazine, he could not do so because the Speaker had not given permission. Rahul Gandhi actually wanted to refer to an article published in “Caravan” magazine regarding Naravane’s book, which contained comments about Doklam.
Rahul Gandhi said that they were not speaking about China, but wanted to bring to light some things that had been said about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and requested permission to do so. Rahul Gandhi attempted to raise the issue of India’s military tensions with China, citing the former Army chief, and claimed that the former Army chief had also commented on the character of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The main opposition party, the Congress, said that the Leader of the Opposition wanted to read an excerpt from the draft of former Army Chief M.M. Naravane’s book, “Four Stars of Destiny,” in the House, which mentions an incident from August 31, 2020.
Following the uproar over this issue, the Speaker clearly stated that he would not allow the matter to be raised under any circumstances, and if Rahul Gandhi did not want to speak, he would call upon the next speaker. The Speaker then named Akhilesh Yadav as the next speaker.
Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav appealed to the Speaker that if Rahul Gandhi wanted to say something regarding China and it was in the national interest, he should be allowed to do so. However, the Speaker did not grant permission, and the House proceedings were adjourned for an hour.
Objecting to the Congress leader’s remarks, Rajnath Singh said, “These are completely baseless claims; the Leader of the Opposition is trying to mislead the House. He should be stopped from speaking on this subject.” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “What do you (Rahul) want to say by demeaning the country?…You are talking about something that has no source…Don’t say anything that demoralizes the army.”
Birla told Rahul Gandhi, “You are constantly disregarding the Chair’s authority; I humbly request you to maintain order…It is not appropriate if we criticize the army and its operations.” Rahul Gandhi said that every soldier in the army knows what happened, but the government wants to hide this from the public.
This controversy actually began with a statement by BJP leader Tejasvi Surya. He said that during the 10 years of the UPA government, the President’s address never mentioned how to strengthen the country’s culture, how to achieve cultural progress, or how to change the mindset of the youth. Rahul Gandhi said that since the Congress party’s patriotism has been questioned, he wanted to refer to General Naravane’s book, in which he has made serious remarks about the Prime Minister and Rajnath Singh, and these remarks were published in Caravan magazine. The BJP has published a statement from Naravane on social media platform X in response. In it, Amit Malviya said, “Rahul Gandhi is incorrigible and is misusing parliamentary privilege to create a hostile environment against India and its armed forces. Former Army Chief General M.M. Naravane has clearly stated, ‘Not an inch of land has been lost.’ Facts matter. Institutions matter. And responsibility in public life is equally important.”
