Rahul Gandhi writes to Speaker Om Birla, demands restoration of his expunged LS Speech
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and demanded that he restore the expunged portions of his maiden speech as the Leader of the Opposition.
PTC News Desk: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and demanded that he restore the expunged portions of his maiden speech as the Leader of the Opposition.
The senior leader claimed that a significant part of his statement was removed from the House proceedings in the name of expunction.
"I am, however, shocked to note the manner in which a considerable portion of my speech has been simply taken off from the proceedings under the garb of expunction," the letter read.
"I am enclosing relevant portions of uncorrected Debates of Lok Sabha dated 2 July. I am constrained to state that the portions expunged do not come under the ambit of Rule 380. What I sought to convey in the House is ground reality, the factual position. Every member of the House who personifies the collective voice of the people whom he or she represents has the freedom of speech as enshrined in Article 105(1) of the Constitution of India. It is every member's right to raise people's concerns on the floor of the House," it further read.
Rahul Gandhi stated that the Speaker's move "goes against the very tenets of parliamentary democracy," and he asked that "the remarks expunged from the proceedings be restored."
Several parts of Rahul Gandhi's speech, particularly his criticisms on the BJP over the NEET issue and the Agnipath scheme, were removed from Parliament's records. His comments about Hinduism, which sparked Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rare intervention, were also removed.