New Delhi, Mar 11: The Congress on Wednesday criticised Union Minister Kiren Rijiju for comparing the 10-hour debate on the resolution seeking the Lok Sabha Speaker’s removal with the two-and-a-half-hour discussion on a similar motion in 1954, saying former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had then urged that most of the time be given to the opposition.
The debate on the resolution is expected to conclude on Wednesday with Union Home Minister Amit Shah replying to the discussion.
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said that during Tuesday’s Lok Sabha debate, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rijiju highlighted that 10 hours had been allotted for the discussion, while only 2.5 hours were provided for a similar motion in December 1954.
However, Ramesh said Rijiju did not mention that on December 18, 1954, Prime Minister Nehru had attended the debate and requested the Deputy Speaker, who was presiding over the House, to allocate more time to the opposition.
“When the motion was moved on December 1, 1954, the Congress had 364 MPs in a House of 489 members,” Ramesh said in a post on X. He also noted that during the 1954 debate, as well as on later occasions in 1966 and 1987, a Deputy Speaker presided over the House when a motion against the Speaker was discussed.
Ramesh further alleged that since mid-2019 there has been no Deputy Speaker in the Lok Sabha, calling it a violation of the Constitution.
During the debate on the resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Om Birla, Rijiju criticised TMC leader Saugata Roy for questioning who would preside over the proceedings.
Rijiju said that in 1954, when the opposition brought a resolution against then Speaker G V Mavalankar, there was a dispute over the time allotted for the discussion. Eventually, a consensus was reached for a two-hour debate, he said, adding that the current discussion is taking place over two days.
Responding to Rijiju’s remarks, Ramesh shared a screenshot of the 1954 debate transcript on X, quoting Nehru as saying that more time should be given to the opposition than to the government benches.
The ruling NDA on Tuesday strongly defended Speaker Om Birla in the Lok Sabha, claiming the resolution for his removal was brought only to create “spectacular headlines.” The opposition, however, accused the Speaker of partisanship, alleging he made “baseless” remarks about certain women MPs and did not allow Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to raise “critical issues” in the House.
Several opposition members participating in the debate said Birla maintains cordial relations with MPs but urged him to conduct the proceedings impartially and not yield to government pressure. Treasury bench members, on the other hand, maintained that Birla has been fair and that opposition MPs were suspended due to their conduct.
