Parliament’s budget session live: The Lok Sabha was adjourned for an hour on Tuesday amid protests and sloganeering by opposition members over the recently announced trade deal between India and the US.
Both Houses of Parliament reconvened today to resume debate on the “Thanks to the President’s Speech” motion, a day after a major political row broke out. Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi sought to read in the Lok Sabha from former army chief MM Naravane’s unpublished “memoirs” on the India-China conflict in 2020.
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Soon after the obituary was mentioned, members of the opposition began promoting the trade deal. Members shouted “Howdi-Modi” slogans referring to the mega event held on September 22, 2019 at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, United States, attended by Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The opposition on Tuesday claimed that the Union government did not make an official statement or take the confidence of Parliament.
US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the US and India had agreed on a trade deal. President Trump announced on Monday evening (IST) that India and the US have agreed to a trade deal under which Washington will reduce reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods to 18 percent from the current 25 percent. Trump said this after a phone conversation with Prime Minister Modi, who announced US Ambassador to India Sergio Gorwho joined last month.
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On Tuesday, Congress MP KC Venugopal announced an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha to discuss the India-US trade deal.
“Despite the significant economic, agricultural and strategic implications of these announced commitments, the government has not made an official announcement or taken Parliament into confidence,” Venugopal said.
The country has a right to know the exact terms of the proposed trade agreement and it is essential that the government submits all the details to the parliament and the nation, he added.
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“Given the urgency and public importance of this matter, this matter requires immediate discussion through an Adjournment Motion,” the Congress leader said.
A country has a right to know the exact terms of a proposed trade agreement.
“The country has a right to know the exact terms of the proposed trade agreement and it is essential that the government submits all the details to parliament and the nation,” he added.
“Due to the urgency and public importance of this matter, this matter requires immediate discussion through an Adjournment Motion,” the Congress leader added.
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There has been no official government statement on the agreement yet. While the top ministers mentioned reducing the reciprocal duty on Indian goods to 18 percent from the current 25 percent, no social media post mentioned anything about Russian oil and other things that President Trump claimed in a social media post after he spoke to PM Modi on Monday evening.
Earlier, the Congress attacked the Union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, shortly after US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the US and India had agreed to a trade deal. The opposition party said the prime minister appeared to have “finally capitulated” and that it “cannot be the father of all deals”.
The Lok Sabha was marred by protests on Monday as well. A massive political row ensued when the Leader of the Opposition (LoP), speaking during the budget session of Parliament, attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh for trying to read about India-China clashes from excerpts from the unpublished memoirs of former army chief MM Naravane. The excerpts published in the magazine drew a backlash from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, who accused him of lying to the House and belittling the armed forces. The house was adjourned for the day due to repeated protests in the house.