NEW DELHI, FEB 5: Speaker Om Birla informed the Lok Sabha on Thursday that he advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stay away from the chamber to avoid potential physical altercations. The decision followed intense protests by opposition members, specifically women MPs who gathered near the Prime Minister’s seat. These disruptions forced the House to pass the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address without the traditional concluding reply from the Prime Minister.
The Speaker expressed significant distress over the deteriorating decorum within the House. He noted that the presence of members in the treasury benches was a breach of protocol that risked the safety of the proceedings.
“I urged the PM not to come because anything untoward could have happened. Some opposition members had come to the treasury side and their conduct was unparliamentary,” Birla said.
The conflict stems from an opposition demand for disciplinary action against BJP MP Nishikant Dubey regarding remarks made about the Nehru-Gandhi family. Congress leadership argued that previous rulings regarding prior notice for critical remarks should apply to the BJP member as well.
Government representatives supported the decision for the Prime Minister to remain absent, citing the need to protect the institution’s integrity. BJP MP Aprajita Sarangi mentioned that the positioning of protesters made the environment volatile.
“Women members of the opposition had positioned themselves in the path the Prime Minister takes to his seat in Lok Sabha. They carried banners with ugly messaging written all over. PM avoided coming to the House to maintain its dignity,” Sarangi said.
