LS speaker offered tea, but ignored…, Rahul Gandhi on speaking at Parliament
1 min read 25 Mar 2023, 02:46 PM ISTRahul Gandhi also claimed that he has been disqualified from the parliament as BJP is afraid of his next speech on Adani.
PremiumRahul Gandhi, who held his first press conference on Saturday since his disqualification, alleged that the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla ignored his letters requesting time to reply to the allegations made against him by BJP leaders over his speech in London regarding the state of democracy in India. He also claimed that he has been disqualified from the parliament as BJP is afraid of his next speech on Adani.
The senior Congress leader claimed that he went to the Speaker's chamber and questioned him about why he was not allowed to speak in parliament. In response, the Speaker allegedly smiled and invited Gandhi for tea instead of addressing his concerns.
"I went to the Speaker sir's chamber and asked why he was not allowing me to speak. He smiled and said that he can't allow that. He then asked me to have a cup of tea with him," the former Wayanad MP said.
Despite his first letter posted on March 17th, which went unanswered, Gandhi released a second letter urging the Speaker to allow him the right to reply in Parliament. This request comes at a time when Parliament has been experiencing a logjam due to the BJP's demand for an apology from Gandhi for his London remarks and the Opposition's call for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani-Hindenburg row.
In response to the BJP's allegation that he sought foreign intervention through his speech, Gandhi dismissed it as ridiculous. He said, “My speech made in Parliament was expunged, and later I wrote a detailed reply to the Lok Sabha Speaker...saying that this is my right to get an opportunity to speak in Parliament. I got no answers."
Gandhi also claimed that he does not care if he permanently loses his MP status, adding that the reason for his disqualification was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's fear of his next speech on Adani. He stated that he has seen the fear in Modi's eyes.
On Friday, Gandhi was disqualified as a member of the Lok Sabha, following his conviction by the Surat court in a defamation case over his 'Modi surname' remark. Despite this setback, Gandhi remains an important figure in Indian politics and continues to voice his concerns over the state of democracy in the country.
