Lok Sabha in Uproar Over Rahul Gandhi’s China Remarks, House Adjourned for the Day
BuzzBytes | New Delhi | February 2, 2026
The Lok Sabha witnessed repeated disruptions and was adjourned for the day on Monday after a sharp confrontation erupted over Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s attempt to quote from what he described as a “memoir” of former Army chief M M Naravane on the 2020 India–China conflict.
The controversy unfolded when Gandhi rose to speak during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address and sought to respond to remarks made by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, who had questioned the Congress party’s nationalism. Gandhi began reading from a document he claimed reflected Gen Naravane’s account of the India–China standoff, prompting immediate and strong objections from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and other BJP members.
Singh demanded that Gandhi clarify whether the alleged book had been published, accusing him of misleading the House. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla disallowed Gandhi from raising the issue, repeatedly stating that unpublished books or unrelated newspaper and magazine articles cannot be quoted on the floor of the House. Gandhi, however, insisted that the material was authenticated and that he had the right to quote from it.
The standoff lasted nearly 50 minutes, with heated exchanges between the treasury and opposition benches. Government sources accused Gandhi of reading “concocted things” on China and argued that ample material already exists in the public domain regarding India’s China policy in earlier decades. Gandhi countered that he had not intended to raise the issue but was compelled to do so after the Congress was accused of lacking patriotism.
As the uproar continued, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju urged Gandhi to abide by the Speaker’s ruling, warning that repeatedly flouting House rules set a wrong example for young parliamentarians and could force the House to consider action against such conduct.
With both sides refusing to back down, the Speaker adjourned the House till 3 pm. When proceedings resumed, Gandhi again attempted to raise the India–China border issue, drawing renewed protests from the treasury benches. Rijiju cautioned the Opposition leader against making remarks that could be seen as belittling the armed forces.
As the deadlock persisted, Birla adjourned the House once more, first till 4 pm and eventually for the day.
Several opposition leaders rallied behind Gandhi during the standoff, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, TMC MPs Mahua Moitra and Kalyan Banerjee, and RJD’s Manoj Jha, urging the Speaker to allow the Leader of Opposition to speak.
The episode underscored the deepening confrontation between the government and the Opposition over national security narratives, leaving Parliament paralysed amid accusations, counter-allegations and repeated adjournments.
