NEW DELHI, Feb 10: After several days of gridlock between the treasury and opposition benches, the Lok Sabha on Tuesday afternoon resumed discussion on the Union Budget, which had been stalled over opposition demands that Rahul Gandhi be allowed to speak on various issues.
The House convened at 2 pm following two adjournments, with Krishna Prasad Tenneti in the Chair. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor of Thiruvananthapuram initiated the debate, marking a significant step toward breaking the stalemate.
The breakthrough came shortly after opposition parties submitted a notice seeking a resolution to remove Speaker Om Birla. From 2 pm to 8 pm, members from multiple parties participated in the debate, engaging on various aspects of the Budget.
The Lok Sabha’s Business Advisory Committee has allocated 18 hours for the discussion, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expected to respond on Thursday afternoon.
Since February 2, the House had experienced repeated disruptions, which resulted in the suspension of seven Congress members and one CPI(M) member for the remainder of the Budget session.
Speaker Birla, anticipating further unrest, requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to attend the House last week when he was scheduled to respond to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s address delivered on January 28.
Birla cited concerns that Congress members could create “unpleasant scenes,” which had further aggravated tensions between the government and opposition benches.
Despite earlier disruptions, the Motion of Thanks was eventually adopted through a voice vote amid sloganeering by opposition members. Birla had previously lamented that repeated interruptions had wasted over 19 hours of parliamentary time.
The resumption of the Budget discussion on Tuesday reflects a tentative easing of tensions, enabling both government and opposition members to engage on critical fiscal and policy issues after a period of heightened political discord.
This development signals a cautious restoration of parliamentary functioning while highlighting ongoing challenges in managing debate and decorum in the House. (PTI)
