Rahul Gandhi spoke out for the public good and pointed out problems with the government. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is on op duty.
The Lok Sabha Secretariat has asked Congress MP Rahul Gandhi to respond to the breach of privilege notices given by BJP members about his comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the House. On Monday, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury wrote to Speaker Om Birla saying that the job of the Opposition is to point out the problems with the government and that “we are failing to do our Constitutional duty” if the voice of the Opposition is not heard.
Chowdhury said that Gandhi had “done his job as an elected representative” by bringing up the allegations against the Adani group because it was in the “public interest.” He said that in the past, BJP members have made false accusations against former PMs and made “derogatory remarks” about Gandhi and his family, but they were never punished.
Referring to the notices sent by BJP members asking for permission to move privilege motions against Gandhi, Chowdhury said, “In the notice, it says that Gandhi has made comments about how the PM works without giving prior notice under Rule 353 of the Rules of Procedure.”
“The exception to this rule says that the Speaker can stop a member from making such an accusation if he thinks the accusation is hurtful and serves no public interest. If you take the rules at face value, they say that you can’t make an accusation against someone who isn’t a member of the House unless it’s in the public interest,” he said, adding that Gandhi had brought up the issue because it was in the public interest.
“The job of the opposition parties is to point out the government’s flaws so that they can be fixed and the country can move forward. “If we don’t let the opposition’s voice be heard, we’re not following the Constitution,” he said.
