Amid an onslaught by ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders demanding an apology from Rahul Gandhi over his “democracy under attack” remarks made in London, the Congress MP on Thursday asserted that he “didn’t speak anything anti-India”.
Rahul Gandhi made the statement while entering the Parliament where he is expected to address the allegations levelled against him by the BJP in the Lower House.
“I didn’t speak anything anti-India (in London seminar). If they will allow I will speak inside the Parliament,” he said.
On a question over BJP’s demand for apology from the Wayanad MP, he replied, “If they allow me to speak in Parliament, then I will say what I think.”
Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 PM, amid ruckus by several members in both the Houses of Parliament. This was the third straight day when proceedings in both Houses of Parliament faced disruptions due to the BJP’s demand of an apology by Rahul Gandhi and the Opposition’s demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani-Hindenburg issue.
The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 2 pm today by Speaker Om Birla within two minutes of the proceedings commencing on Thursday as the Opposition and Treasury benches remained at loggerheads.
After witnessing uproar within four minutes of assembling, Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 PM. Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar urged the members to take their seats but Treasury benches continued to press for their demand for an apology from Rahul Gandhi for his remarks, while TMC members alleged they were not allowed to speak.
Recently, speaking at Cambridge University’s Judge Business School, Gandhi had said that the “Indian democracy is under attack”.
“Everybody knows and it’s been in the news a lot that Indian democracy is under pressure, is under attack, right. I’m an Opposition leader in India and we’re navigating that space. What’s happening, the institutional framework which is required for a democracy – Parliament, a free press, the Judiciary, just the idea of mobilisation, just the idea of moving around, these are all getting constrained. So we are facing an attack on the basic structure of Indian democracy in the Constitution,” the Congress MP had said.