Lok Sabha
Credit: Sansad TV via PTI Photo
New Delhi: The Motion of Thanks to the President's address was passed in Lok Sabha without the government's reply, amid protest by the Opposition over Rahul Gandhi not being allowed to conclude his speech.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were not present in the House when Speaker Om Birla took up the motion for voting.
Opposition MPs were already in the Well of the House at 12 noon after the Question Hour could not function.
Birla first took up all amendments submitted by Opposition for voting and in a voice vote, it was defeated.
Following this, he took up the motion for voting and it was defeated. Birla then adjourned the House till 2 pm when General discussion on Budget is scheduled to be taken up.
No Opposition MP could speak following protest over not allowing Leader of Opposition Rahul to continue his speech after he was disallowed from referring to an an unreleased memoir of General (Retd) MM Naravane.
Only three MPs -- Minister Sarbanand Sonowal, Tejasvi Surya and TDP's GM Harish Balayogi could speak during the debate. BJP's Nishikant Dubey and PP Choudhary also made brief interventions.
SP's Akhilesh Yadav and Naresh Uttam Yadav, TMCs shatabdi roy and dmk TR Baalu were called to speak but they didnt, saying LOP should be aollowed to speak
In June 2004, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could not deliver his reply to the Lok Sabha debate following BJP protest. He had then asked the LS to put the motion to vote with out his reply.
In his 2005 speech, Singh had mentioned about him not being allowed to speak.