New Delhi: The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 3 pm on Monday after heated exchanges broke out when Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi sought to cite an unpublished book by former Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane during his address, triggering objections from the Treasury benches and a brief but noisy disruption in the House.


The reference prompted immediate objections from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who argued that unpublished material cannot be cited on the floor of the House.

Home Minister Amit Shah supported the objection, urging Gandhi to restrict his remarks to officially published and verifiable sources. “Magazines can publish anything,” Shah said, insisting that such references should not be allowed in parliamentary proceedings.
Speaker Om Birla cited parliamentary rules to state that no book or newspaper clipping could be quoted on issues unrelated to the business before the House.

As he began the Opposition’s response to the Motion of Thanks, Rahul Gandhi said he was referring to a magazine article to substantiate his arguments.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh objected, accusing Gandhi of misleading the House, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav came out in support of the Congress leader and appealed to the Speaker to allow him to continue his speech.

The intervention triggered protests from Opposition members, who objected to what they termed an interruption of the Leader of the Opposition, while members from the Treasury benches pressed for strict adherence to parliamentary conventions. The exchange briefly stalled proceedings before order was restored.

(With PTI inputs)