Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Feb 3: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday suspended eight Congress MPs for the remainder of the Budget Session after they disrupted proceedings and threw papers toward the Chair. The suspended members include Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Hibi Eden, C. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Prashant Yadaorao Padole, S. Venkatesh, and Dean Kuriakose.

Chairing the House, Dilip Saikia said that while the opposition has the right to raise issues, bringing proceedings to a standstill violates parliamentary traditions. The motion was passed amid loud sloganeering, and the House was adjourned for the day.

The disruption followed a continuation of opposition protests over the Ladakh standoff with China. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi attempted to raise the issue for the second consecutive day, quoting a magazine article linked to an unpublished book by former Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane. Despite repeated objections from the Chair citing parliamentary rules against quoting news or magazine sources, Gandhi insisted on addressing the matter.

“I am objecting to the term permission; I am the Leader of Opposition. No one gives me permission to speak,” Gandhi said, questioning why he was being stopped from discussing Eastern Ladakh, where Indian soldiers were killed.

Attempts to allow other opposition MPs to speak, including Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Uttam Patel and TDP MP G.M. Harish Balayogi, were unsuccessful as they refused or were drowned out by ongoing protests. Sloganeering and ruckus persisted when the House reconvened, leading to adjournment for the day.

The suspension of the eight Congress MPs marks a significant escalation in tensions between the opposition and the Chair during the ongoing Budget Session.