Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan directed Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju to “echo the sentiments of the Opposition” to Home Minister Amit Shah on the 14th day of the Monsoon Session, which has been marked by disruptions, especially in the first half of the day reserved for non-legislative work, including Question Hour.

The Rajya Sabha saw two adjournments in the morning session. Twenty minutes into the sitting, with Opposition sloganeering drowning out the Zero Hour speeches of members, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mr. Rijiju raised a point of order. Citing two rules, which refer to not interrupting members and allowing the Chair to truncate speeches in cases where members are repeating their arguments, he said, “Mr. Kharge has been saying the same thing every day. There is a rule against repetition.”

He also named newly elected Congress MP Pawan Khera, noting that Mr. Khera has not even delivered his maiden speech yet in the House but has been sloganeering. The House was adjourned at 11.25 a.m.

When it reconvened at noon for Question Hour, the protests continued. Questions were asked and answered amid the din. Heeding the Opposition’s request, Chairman Mr. Radhakrishnan asked Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge to speak. The Treasury Benches objected to this. Amid the noisy exchange between the two sides, Mr. Kharge commented, “If I don’t read the rules, if I don’t read my matter, should I read what you (Mr. Rijiju) give? It’s my right, what to speak, when to speak, how to speak.”

Mr. Kharge said the Opposition raised genuine questions concerning the country and its 140 crore people.

“We are asking the Home Minister and the Prime Minister to come to the House. We request the Chair to direct the Home Minister to come and give a statement. We are ready to discuss it,” he said. He also cited late BJP leader Arun Jaitley’s remarks that disruptions are a part of parliamentary democracy.

Even as the situation was coming to a boil, Mr. Radhakrishnan said that the Opposition had been asking the Home Minister to come to the House. “Now I request you to consider his (Kharge’s) request. He requested that the Home Minister come to the House... As Parliamentary Affairs Minister, you can echo the sentiments of the Opposition to the HM,” Mr. Radhakrishnan said.

In the face of fresh protests from the Treasury Benches, Mr. Radhakrishnan said that the Minister must “reflect” the Opposition’s sentiments to the Home Minister. Amid the continuous protests, the Chair continued with the listed business for around 30 minutes before adjourning the proceedings till 2.15 p.m.

Addressing a press conference later in the day, Mr. Kharge expressed satisfaction with the Chairman’s direction. “The House is being disrupted by the government and not us,” Mr. Kharge said. He claimed that there could be only two reasons to explain the Home Minister’s absence. Either he believes that “Parliament does not matter” or he is “scared”, the Congress President said.

Published - August 06, 2026 05:12 pm IST