The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes after BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad spoke about the responsibilities associated with the position of the Leader of Opposition (LoP) and Rahul Gandhi, while speaking in his defence stated that "wild things have been said about me" and added that "the last time I spoke, I raised a fundamental question."
During the debate, Prasad took a swipe at LoP Rahul Gandhi and raised questions about his conduct both inside Parliament and during his visits abroad. Referring to Congress leader K.C. Venugopal, the BJP leader suggested that Gandhi needed guidance on how the LoP should conduct himself in the House.
"Venugopal ji should teach something to Rahul Gandhi about the conduct of the LoP," Prasad said, drawing sharp reactions from Opposition Benches. Prasad also criticised Rahul Gandhi for referring to what he described as an "unpublished memoir" of a former Army Chief in the House.
His remarks triggered loud protests, with Opposition MPs raising slogans and objecting to the comments. Amid the uproar, Rahul Gandhi responded to Prasad and defended his remarks in the House. "The discussion here is about the democratic process and the role of the Speaker.
Multiple times, my name has been raised, and wild things have been said about me," LoP Gandhi said. He added that Parliament represents the collective voice of the people and not just the ruling party. "This House is the expression of the people of India.
It does not represent one party, but the whole country. Every time we get up to speak, we are stopped from speaking. The last time I spoke, I raised a fundamental question about the compromises made by our PM," LoP Gandhi said. Responding to LoP Gandhi's remarks, Ravi Shankar Prasad defended the Prime Minister and rejected the allegation.
"I would like to remind the LoP that the Prime Minister of India can never be compromised," Prasad said. Participating in the debate on the motion to remove Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Prasad also referred to past incidents in Parliament and cited precedents to counter the Opposition's allegations about the functioning of the House.
He recalled an episode during the UPA government when the BJP had protested over what it considered unfair conduct in the Lok Sabha. Prasad said that during the UPA-1 government, when the 'cash-for-questions' case was taken up in the Lok Sabha, then LoP L.K. Advani was not allowed to speak by then Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.
According to Prasad, the BJP had strongly objected to the move at the time and chose to stage a walkout from the House as a mark of protest. He stated that despite requests from the Speaker asking the party members to return to the House, BJP MPs refused to come back because they did not agree with the manner in which the proceedings had been conducted.
Prasad cited the episode to underline his argument that parliamentary protests had occurred earlier as well and that disagreements over procedures were not new in the functioning of the House.