Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nisikant Dubey on Tuesday, February 4, requested the Lok Sabha Chairman Om Birla to initiate a privilege notice against Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi after he claimed that Chinese troops had occupied Indian soil the previous day.
In a swipe at the Leader of Opposition, Dubey said, “This ‘erudite’ person has neither authenticated his gibberish canards nor apologised for using the pious forum of Parliament to defame our country and the elected government.”
He accused Rahul of blatantly misusing the Constitution’s Article 105, which accords privileges to parliamentarians for their comments made inside the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
A breach of privilege notice is a legislative tool that can be invoked against members found misusing any of their rights or misleading the parliament.
What did Rahul Gandhi say
Rahul was replying to the President’s address during the Budget Session where he alleged that the Indian government’s ambitious initiative, ‘Make In India’, had failed because China had occupied 4000 sq km of land.
“The PM has denied, but the (Indian) army keeps on talking to the Chinese and the Chief of Staff has said the Chinese are inside our territory. People think wars are fought between armies and their weapons. But wars are fought between industrial systems. China has a far stronger industrial system,” Rahul said.
Rahul further argued that China was 10 years ahead of India in the creation of electric motors, robots, batteries and optics.
Rahul stated that he did not place full blame on Prime Minister Modi, who was present in the House during his speech. “I am not entirely blaming the Prime Minister, as it would be unfair to say he didn’t make an effort. I believe he did try, and conceptually, ‘Make in India’ was a good initiative. However, it is quite evident that he failed,” he remarked.
Ruling party marks strong protest against Rahul Gandhi’s speech
Responding to Rahul’s allegations, Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju asked the Congress leader to be serious. “We would like to remind him that such kinds of frivolous act and language should not be repeatedly used. It undermines the parliamentary standards,” he remarked.
He later urged Speaker Om Birla to demand proof from Rahul, NDTV reported.
India China strained relationship
India and China have been locked in a standoff for nearly five years since the unfortunate Galwan Valley clash between military troops of both sides. In June 2020, Indian and Chinese troops entered into a violent clash that began in the Ladakh sector of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) killing 20 Indian soldiers and unaccounted Chinese troops.
On October 21, 2024, in a significant international development, India and China reached an agreement to disengage troops along the LAC from both sides. Soon after, on October 30, the disengagement process was completed at Demchok and Depsang Plains in Eastern Ladakh.
Apart from this, India and China decided to resume direct flights to the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.
Modi sent Jaishankar to get an invite to President Trump’s inauguration, claims Rahul
In another statement, Rahul Gandhi told the House that PM Modi sent Union external foreign minister S Jaishankar “multiple times” to secure an invite for Donald Trump’s inauguration as president of the United States.
Jaishankar, who is a member of the Rajya Sabha, strongly denied Rahul’s claims saying the Congress leader “deliberately spoke on falsehood”.
“At no stage was an invitation in respect of the PM discussed. It is common knowledge that our PM does not attend such events. In fact, India is generally represented by Special Envoys,” Jaishankar said.
