Budget Session: Rahul Gandhi, Rajnath Singh clash in LS over 'memoir' by former Army chief, House adjourned

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to continue his speech in Parliament on Tuesday after he attempted to quote from an article based on the yet-to-be-published memoirs of former Army Chief General M.M. Naravane, relating to the Chinese incursion in Ladakh.

As Gandhi rose to speak on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, he said he would first like to respond to the charges made by the previous speaker, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, against the Congress on nationalism. He proceeded to quote from what he stated was the "memoir" of General Naravane talking about the India-China conflict of 2020.

He was repeatedly interrupted by the treasury benches, following which Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla disallowed the reference, citing parliamentary conventions and rules.

The speaker ruled that material from unpublished books or magazine articles unrelated to the Presidential address cannot be quoted on the floor.

As Gandhi began referring to a story based on General Naravane’s unpublished memoirs, defence minister Rajnath Singh objected and demanded that the source be formally produced before the House.

“I want the leader of the Opposition to present the book he is quoting from, because the book has not been published yet,” Singh said.

Rahul Gandhi questioned the objections, asking, “What does it contain that is scaring them so much? If they are not scared, I should be allowed to read it.” He later sought permission to describe the contents of the article without directly quoting General Naravane, but this request was also denied.

Gandhi responded that his source was authentic and clarified that he was quoting from a magazine article which carried excerpts from the former Army Chief’s memoir. However, Rajnath Singh maintained that citing such material violated parliamentary rules.

Speaker Om Birla upheld the objection, stating, “No magazine or newspaper article that is unrelated to the proceedings of the House can be quoted in Parliament. Debate should be conducted according to the rules.”

Home Minister Amit Shah also intervened, questioning how an unpublished book could be cited in the House. “When the book has not even been published, how can he quote from it?” Shah asked.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju reiterated that parliamentary conventions do not permit members to cite unpublished books or magazine articles, urging that the debate remain within the framework of House rules.

Samajwadi Party chief and MP Akhilesh Yadav backed Rahul Gandhi, urging the Chair to allow him to continue speaking on issues related to China during the debate.

Describing China as a highly sensitive subject, Yadav said the matter warranted serious and uninterrupted discussion in the House, particularly when concerns linked to national security and foreign policy were being raised. Following the stand off, the Lok Sabha was adjourned first till 3 pm and then 4 pm before being adjourned for the day.