As the budget session went on in Parliament, trouble continued for Congress MPs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

On Monday, a privilege motion was filed against Congress veteran Sonia Gandhi over her “poor thing” remark on President Droupadi Murmu.

The BJP MPs, in the notice, alleged the use of “derogatory and slanderous words” to describe the President as she addressed a joint session of Parliament last week.

Additionally, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is also likely to meet the same fate because of his alleged “misleading” remarks about the India-China border dispute in the Lok Sabha.

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Here’s what it means.

Sonia Gandhi’s ‘poor thing’ remark

President Murmu addressed the Parliament to open the budget session on January 31 (Friday).

Sonia Gandhi triggered a row after she referred to the President as a “poor thing” during the latter’s address. She was asked by reporters outside the House about Murmu’s nearly hour-long speech.

“The President was getting very tired by the end. She could hardly speak, poor thing,” Gandhi replied.

“Boring? No comments? Repeating the same thing again and again?” Rahul Gandhi was also heard as he helped his mother.

Leaders of the BJP swiftly denounced the former Congress chief’s remark, with many calling it an insult.

The comment prompted a strong response from Murmu’s office, which described it as “unfortunate and entirely unnecessary,” “poor taste,” and having “hurt the dignity of the high office.”

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Concerns over the president’s health were likewise disregarded by the administration.

Later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at a rally in Delhi, said, “Droupadi Murmu ji has come here from a tribal family. She inspired Parliament today in a wonderful way and gave a speech. But the royal family of Congress has started insulting her. A member of the royal family said that the tribal daughter gave a boring speech. Another member went one step further and called the President a poor thing. They find the speech of a tribal daughter boring.”

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Privilege motion filed

According to PTI, the BJP MPs, led by Rajya Sabha MP Sumer Singh Solanki, met Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and sought disciplinary action against Sonia Gandhi.

“We write this with great dismay about certain unparliamentary, derogatory, and demeaning remarks recently made by Sonia Gandhi, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha), against the President of India, which warrant serious consideration and disciplinary action,” the notice said.

“It is with deep concern we highlight this statement… which appears to demean the stature and dignity of the President of India, the highest Constitutional authority of our nation. Such remarks not only undermine the dignity of the office but also violate the sanctity of parliamentary conventions,” the BJP MPs said in their letter.

Sonia Gandhi’s remark, they argued, “in no way get the benefit of parliamentary privileges,” citing a Supreme Court judgement that said abuse of privilege by an MP was “difficult to digest.”

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“Furthermore, even the Parliamentary Ethics and Code of Conduct prescribes that no member utter defamatory words against others… this assumes significance when it concerns the President of India, and that too, when spoken about within the Parliamentary premises.”

The remarks, they argued, were “a clear manifestation of the elitist and anti-tribal mindset of Gandhi, who is yet to understand the struggle and sensitivity of a tribal poor.”

“Given the gravity of this issue, we humbly urge you to take cognizance and initiate appropriate disciplinary action against Sonia Gandhi,” the BJP MPs wrote, calling for exemplary action.”

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra defended her mother and accused the BJP of misinterpreting the remarks, pointing out that the veteran leader was 78 years old. There was no ill intent in the comment, she said.

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“My mother is a 78-year-old lady… she simply said ’the President read such a long speech and (that) she must have been tired, the poor thing’. She fully respects the President. I think it very unfortunate this kind of thing is twisted by the media. The two are respected people…” she told the media.

Parliamentary privileges

Legislators are granted specific rights known as parliamentary privileges, which offer them some degree of legal protection. This is to make sure lawmakers can carry out their responsibilities without worrying about the consequences.

No legislation in India clarifies what constitutes a parliamentary privilege. Only two types of privileges are specifically mentioned in Article 105 of the Indian Constitution: the freedom of expression in Parliament and the right to publish the proceedings of the house.

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Members are protected from arrest and detention under a civil process during house proceedings or while any of its committees are in action by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.

MPs are also granted immunity for 40 days before the start of any committee or house proceedings and following their end.

Privileges depend on house rules and other legislative conventions in addition to the Indian Constitution and the Code of Civil Procedure. Anything stated or published about house or committee proceedings does not subject members to legal action.

Privilege motion

A member may file a motion or complaint with the speaker or chairman of the house if they feel that such a privilege has been violated or misused.

There are two requirements: the question must be limited to something recent and the Council must be involved.

After initial examination, the Speaker/Chair has the option to accept or deny the proposal. After being accepted, the motion is sent to a privileges committee, which is made up of people he often nominates.

A privilege motion’s examination committee may offer suggestions it thinks appropriate.

Additionally, it can call the appropriate people and view any necessary papers.

A report must be delivered no later than one month, or earlier if the chair or speaker suggests it.

The House can review the committee’s report and propose changes once it is submitted. Only in severe circumstances is it advised that members face penalties.

In July 2024, Congress had moved a privilege motion against PM Modi for sharing BJP MP Anurag Thakur’s speech with “defamatory portions” on social media.

Similar fate for Rahul Gandhi’s ‘misleading’ remarks

To make matters worse, Rahul Gandhi, the son of Congress MP and Sonia Gandhi, is also expected to be the subject of a privilege motion brought by BJP MPs for his “misleading” comments on Monday over the India-China border dispute, according to News18.

In the Lok Sabha,
Rahul Gandhi attacked the ruling party, saying that the presence of Chinese troops in India was due to the “failure” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government’s “Make-in-India” effort.

“Our Chief of Army Staff has said the Chinese are inside our territory. This is a fact. The reason China is inside our territory is important… The reason China is sitting inside this country is because ‘Make in India’ has failed. The reason China is sitting inside this country is because India is refusing to produce,” he said.

“The Prime Minister has denied it and the Army has contradicted the Prime Minister that China is sitting on 4000 square kilometres of our territory,” the Congress leader claimed.

In response, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla demanded evidence for the allegations.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, on the other hand, said that Gandhi attempted to “damage the country’s image, the respect for the Prime Minister’s chair, and the dignity of Parliament” in his speech on the Motion of Thanks to the President.

Further speaking on External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar’s US visit, Gandhi said, “When we talk to the United States, we would not send the Foreign Minister three times to get an invitation for our Prime Minister because if we had a production system, and we were working on these technologies, the US President would come here and invite the Prime Minister.”

EAM Jaishankar also dismissed Gandhi’s claim and further accused him of tarnishing India’s image globally.

“Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi deliberately spoke a falsehood about my visit to the US in December 2024. I went to meet the Secretary of State and NSA of the Biden Administration. Also, to chair a gathering of our Consuls General. During my stay, the incoming NSA-designate met with me,” Jaishankar said.

With inputs from agencies

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