Parliament that Nehru built is now a pale shadow of its former self: Congress

The Congress on Tuesday invoked a moment from Parliament’s early history to mount a sharp critique of the present, recalling how India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, had once urged that more time be given to the Opposition during a debate on the removal of the speaker. The party said the Parliament Nehru painstakingly nurtured through dialogue and accommodation now stands diminished.

The intervention comes as Opposition parties weigh the option of moving a resolution to remove Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, accusing him of denying Rahul Gandhi and other Opposition leaders the opportunity to speak during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address and of presiding over the suspension of eight MPs.

Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh, in a post on X, revisited a debate from 18 December 1954, when the Lok Sabha took up a resolution moved by the Opposition seeking the removal of then speaker G.V. Mavalankar. Ramesh reproduced excerpts from the parliamentary exchange to underline what he described as Nehru’s commitment to democratic fairness.

Quoting the official record, Ramesh recalled how Nehru rose at the start of the debate to make a submission to the House. When informed that two hours — from 3.30 pm to 5.30 pm — had been allotted for the discussion, Nehru urged the deputy speaker to consider granting the Opposition more time than the Treasury benches. He told the House that while the government would naturally need to speak, it did not wish to dominate the proceedings and believed the Opposition deserved greater space.

Ramesh pointed out that this approach was adopted in the First Lok Sabha despite the Congress enjoying an overwhelming majority, with 364 seats out of a total of 489, and at a time when there was not even a formally recognised leader of the Opposition.

“And this was the approach of the then prime minister,” Ramesh said, contrasting it with what he described as the present state of parliamentary functioning. “Parliament that Nehru built up day after day by sitting, speaking, listening and accommodating is now a pale shadow of its former self.”

To bolster his argument, Ramesh also shared screenshots of the original parliamentary transcript from the 1954 debate.

The Congress leader’s remarks come amid heightened political tension in Parliament. Sources said the Opposition is preparing to submit a notice for a resolution seeking the Speaker’s removal, with efforts underway to gather the required signatures of MPs to move the motion in the Lok Sabha.

With PTI inputs