Congress leader Shashi Tharoor criticised the denial of speaking time to Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha, calling it bizarre, as Budget debate stalled amid opposition-government standoff and microphones being cut
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor. File Pic
Calling it “absolutely bizarre,” senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday said that Rahul Gandhi must be allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha, claiming both their microphones were cut when he yielded time during the Budget discussion.
The Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram questioned the intent of the Speaker and the government, reported news agency PTI.
“The situation is very strange. I don’t know whether the Speaker or the government do not want the House to debate the Budget. There is a long-standing tradition of more than 70 years that when two members seek the floor, priority is given first to the LoP and then to the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs,” Tharoor told reporters in the Parliament House complex after the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day.
“Now we have had two successive presiding officers who refused to let the LoP speak, while the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs is consistently given the floor whenever he raises his hand. That is not correct. You cannot favour the government side like this. The House belongs to all of us,” he said, reported PTI.
Tharoor added that the government would get its opportunity to reply in due course.
“No one is stopping them from replying,” he said.
He further stated that Gandhi should have been allowed to place his concerns on record.
They simply would not let Rahul Gandhi speak
“When you do not allow him to speak, you undermine the very purpose of Parliament, which is discussion and deliberation. I do not understand what instructions these presiding officers came with, but they simply would not let Rahul Gandhi speak,” he said.
“So when I finally got the microphone during the Budget discussion, I said I would yield to the LoP and let him speak. At that point, both our microphones were cut off. I don’t understand what the government and the Speaker want,” Tharoor said.
Denying one side the right to speak was “absolutely bizarre” and contrary to parliamentary tradition, he added.
Rahul Gandhi was seeking to clarify allegations against opposition, says Tharoor
“This is not the parliamentary culture we have been accustomed to over seven decades of democracy. He was standing up to clarify allegations made against the opposition, including claims that women MPs intended to attack the Prime Minister. How would we know what he would have said?” Tharoor asked, reported PTI.
The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day amid a stand-off between the government and the opposition over Gandhi’s demand to speak before the Budget discussion began.
When the House reconvened at 2 pm after two adjournments, Sandhya Ray, who was in the Chair, asked Tharoor to initiate the Budget debate. Tharoor requested that Gandhi, as LoP, be allowed to raise certain points first.
Ray said she had no objection if Gandhi wished to speak on the Budget and invited him to begin. However, Gandhi said an agreement had been reached at a meeting between Speaker Om Birla and opposition MPs, allowing him to raise certain issues before the debate, but alleged that the Chair was now reneging on it, reported PTI.
Ray said she was unaware of any such agreement and could not permit members to raise issues without prior notice.
Rijiju denies any agreement, says Speaker must be present for remarks
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju intervened, denying the existence of any agreement and stating that if the LoP wanted to make remarks about the Speaker, Birla should be present in the House to respond. Rijiju added that other members would also speak and the matter could be discussed more broadly.
With neither side relenting, the Chair adjourned the House for the day.
(With PTI input)
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