What began as a stormy Budget Session marked by repeated protests in the Lok Sabha has culminated in the Opposition submitting a no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on February 10. The move comes amid growing frustration over how parliamentary proceedings have been managed, including the episode on February 4 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not enter the House to reply to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address — a convention observed for decades.
The Budget Session, which began on January 28, saw frequent disruptions as Opposition MPs demanded that Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi be allowed to speak. Rahul sought to refer to excerpts from an allegedly unpublished book by former Army chief General (Retd) MM Naravane, reportedly touching on the Bangladesh–China border conflict and the 2020 Galwan clash. The government objected on grounds of national security and publication clearance, leading to repeated clashes on the Lok Sabha floor.
During debates on the Motion of Thanks, Opposition MPs entered the Well of the House, shouted slogans and held up placards — a form of protest that, while disruptive, has been seen in many contentious sessions of Parliament irrespective of which party is in power. Amid this disorder, several Opposition MPs were suspended.
On February 4, with Lok Sabha proceedings deteriorating, Speaker Om Birla had reportedly cited concerns about safety and decorum and advised Prime Minister Modi not to enter the chamber for his reply. This was the first time in over two decades that a government’s leader did not deliver the customary reply in the Lok Sabha, prompting nationwide debate.
Competing narratives
In the aftermath, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju released video clips from Lok Sabha showing Opposition MPs — including many women — standing near the Prime Minister’s seat with placards. Government leaders described the scene as a breach of decorum and argued that the Prime Minister’s non-appearance was justified on security grounds.
"Congress Party is proud of the most degrading behavior by their MPs !! If we had not stopped all BJP MPs and allowed the Women MPs to confront Cong. MPs, it would have led to a very ugly scene. We have very high consideration, to protect the dignity & sanctity of the Parliament," Kiren Rijiju, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, wrote on X, attaching a video of the protest.
The Opposition responded that the footage showed routine protest in the Well and no credible threat to the Prime Minister. Congress MPs argued that the Speaker’s claims about threats were exaggerated and demanded a balanced assessment of what actually transpired.
Congress MP Jothimani, one of the women MPs seen in the footage, said the video released by Rijiju actually contradicted the government’s claims. In a post on X, she said the visuals showed women MPs “holding banners and calmly speaking to ruling party MPs near the Treasury Benches,” and insisted there was no threat or violence.
Jothimani rejected allegations that Opposition MPs were planning any “unforeseen incident”, calling them a false narrative amplified after the Prime Minister stayed away from the House. She said the protest stemmed from the government’s refusal to allow the Leader of the Opposition and other MPs to speak on what she described as serious national issues, including national security concerns and the India–U.S. trade deal.
Women MPs from the BJP wrote to Om Birla on Tuesday urging him to take action against the Opposition MPs for disrupting the Parliament proceedings.
Ahead of the Opposition’s decision to move a no-confidence motion, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi publicly rejected claims that Prime Minister Narendra Modi stayed away from the Lok Sabha due to security concerns.
Speaking to reporters on February 9, Rahul Gandhi said the Prime Minister “was scared to come to the House” not because of any threat from MPs, but because of issues the Opposition intended to raise, including former Army chief MM Naravane’s book and what he described as controversial aspects of the Union Budget.
“There is no question of any Congress MP threatening the Prime Minister,” Rahul said, daring those making such claims to “file an FIR” if any specific threat had been issued. He accused the government of avoiding debate and repeatedly blocking him from speaking on the Naravane book and related national security issues.
He also alleged that the government was unwilling to face scrutiny over the Budget, and the US trade deal’s potential impact on farmers. Rahul said the disruption of proceedings and the narrative of a security threat were being used to deflect from substantive discussion.
Frustration over these events has now led to a no-confidence motion against the Speaker. On February 10, opposition parties across the INDIA bloc — including Congress, the Samajwadi Party, Left parties and the RJD — submitted a notice containing signatures from at least 118 MPs to the Lok Sabha Secretary-General, invoking Article 94(c) of the Constitution for the removal of the Speaker.
The notice accused Speaker Birla of abuse of constitutional office and bias in his conduct of House proceedings, particularly over decisions that allegedly limited Opposition participation and allowed one side to dominate debates. Opposing parties also pointed to repeated suspensions of their MPs and restrictions on the Leader of the Opposition as factors fueling the motion.
Under parliamentary procedure, a no-confidence resolution against the Speaker must be preceded by a notice period — typically at least 14 days — before being taken up for debate and vote. Given this timeline and the structure of the Budget Session, the motion is likely to come up after Parliament reconvenes following recess or at a later stage in the session.