Budget Session: PM Modi to Address Lok Sabha Amid Opposition Uproar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address the Lok Sabha on Wednesday as Parliament continues debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address, a discussion that has already escalated into a sharp confrontation between the government and the opposition.

The motion, moved by Sarbananda Sonowal and seconded by Tejasvi Surya in the Lok Sabha, follows President Droupadi Murmu’s address to a joint sitting of Parliament on January 28, marking the start of the Budget Session. The House has allotted 18 hours for the debate, with Modi’s reply expected to be the political high point.

In the Rajya Sabha, BJP MP Sadanand Master moved the motion, as both Houses pressed ahead with proceedings amid rising tensions.

On Tuesday, the debate derailed after Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi invoked references from an unpublished memoir by former Army Chief General M.M. Naravane, triggering protests from treasury benches. The standoff culminated in the suspension of eight opposition MPs from the Lok Sabha for the remainder of the session, accused of violating House rules and disrupting proceedings.

Those suspended include Congress MPs Hibi Eden, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Prashant Yadaorao Padole, Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy and Dean Kuriakose, along with CPI(M) MP S. Venkatesan.

Rahul Gandhi later wrote to Speaker Om Birla, alleging that he was prevented from speaking on issues of national security during the debate—adding another layer of friction to an already charged session.

Beyond political sparring, Parliament is also scheduled to take up key institutional business.

MPs Jair Parkash and Balashowry Vallabhaneni are slated to table multiple reports of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) 2025–26, covering subjects ranging from punctuality in Indian Railways and irregularities in the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card scheme, to the government’s response to audit findings on the crop insurance programme.

The Budget Session, spread across 30 sittings over 65 days, will run until April 2, with both Houses set to adjourn for a recess on February 13 and reconvene on March 9 to allow Standing Committees to examine the Demands for Grants of various ministries.

As Prime Minister Modi prepares to respond, the session stands at a crossroads between parliamentary protocol, political confrontation and the broader narrative the government seeks to set for the months ahead.

(With inputs from ANI)