Lok Sabha in Chaos: Rahul Gandhi vs BJP Over Ex-Army Chief's Memoir, 8 MPs Suspended

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A heated debate between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) erupted in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday over former army chief MM Naravane's unpublished memoir. The controversy began when Rahul Gandhi cited the memoir during a discussion on President Droupadi Murmu's address, but the treasury benches objected, leading to a ruckus that continued on Tuesday. The memoir, which was published in Caravan magazine, suggests that the political leadership appeared indecisive during the 2020 India-China face-off. Gandhi's attempt to cite the memoir sparked a huge uproar, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah protesting under rule 349 of the parliamentary procedure. On Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi authenticated a copy of the article in the House, but the Speaker, Krishna Prasad Tenneti, asked him to table it for examination. The opposition leaders were also reprimanded for referring to the Speaker as 'yaar', which is considered unacceptable in the Lok Sabha. As the chaos continued, eight opposition MPs, including seven from the Congress, were suspended for their unruly behavior. The suspended MPs include Hibi Eden, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Prashant Yadaorao Padole, Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy, Dean Kuriakose, and CPI (M) MP S. Venkatesan. Rahul Gandhi has written to Speaker Om Birla, alleging that he was denied his democratic right to speak in the Lok Sabha. In his letter, he claimed that this was the first time in Parliamentary history that the Speaker was forced to prevent the leader of the opposition from speaking on the President's address at the behest of the government. The Lok Sabha has been adjourned until 11 AM on Wednesday due to the ongoing chaos.