LS adjourned after Nishikant Dubey’s remarks targeting Nehru, Indira Gandhi; chair Intervenes

He went on to name Lady Edwina Mountbatten and India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, saying the book describes how, at the time of Independence and Partition, “Nehru ji aiyyashi kar rahe the.” “I wish to quote from the book,” he added.

Dubey also referred to a book by M O Mathai, Jawaharlal Nehru’s former personal assistant, alleging that former prime minister Indira Gandhi had a “personal relationship” with him. “I should be allowed to quote from these books, Sir. …another book describes what relations Indira Gandhi had with Dhirendra Brahmachari,” he said.

He further mentioned The Red Sari, a book on Sonia Gandhi, and said, “It describes how the Congress ran a government on the basis of corruption.” Dubey added references to “book by Nehru,” the Emergency period, Sanjaya Baru’s The Accidental Prime Minister, and works related to the Bofors scandal and the Mitrokhin Archive.

Row over Naravane book

Dubey’s remarks came amid an ongoing confrontation between the Treasury and Opposition benches over Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s attempt earlier this week to quote from an unpublished book by former Indian Army chief M M Naravane on the Modi government’s approach to Chinese aggression.

On Monday, when Gandhi tried to read out an excerpt — portions of which had appeared in The Caravan magazine — he was not allowed to proceed by the Speaker. The Congress has since protested the decision inside Parliament, and eight of its MPs were suspended on Tuesday in connection with the disruptions.

Proceedings on Wednesday began with Congress MPs raising slogans in the Well of the House. Both the morning and afternoon sittings saw repeated adjournments.

Chair objects, House adjourned

During Dubey’s speech, Krishna Prasad Tenneti, who was in the Chair, repeatedly asked him to refrain from using certain expressions, and to stay within the scope of the debate on the President’s Address. He reminded the House that Speaker Om Birla had ruled that members should not go beyond issues mentioned in the Address.

When Dubey continued despite the objections, Tenneti adjourned the House till 5 pm.

The exchange added to the already charged atmosphere in Lok Sabha, where the debate on the President’s Address has been overshadowed by procedural disputes, protests by the Opposition, and sharp exchanges over what material can be cited inside the House.