Opposition parties on Tuesday submitted a notice seeking the removal of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, accusing him of acting in a blatantly partisan manner while conducting the business of the House during the ongoing Budget Session of Parliament.
The notice, supported by 100 Members of Parliament, was submitted to Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh after consultations within the INDIA bloc. Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi, chief whip K Suresh, and whip Mohamed Jawed formally moved the resolution on behalf of several opposition parties, including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, and DMK.
Trinamool Congress MPs, however, did not sign the notice and chose to remain outside the move.
According to opposition leaders, the resolution has backing from multiple parties such as the Congress, Samajwadi Party, DMK, Left parties, RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (SP). The notice has been moved under Article 94(c) of the Constitution of India, which provides for the removal of the Speaker.
In the notice, opposition MPs alleged that the Speaker repeatedly denied them the opportunity to speak, undermining their basic democratic rights. They claimed that on several occasions, leaders from opposition parties were not allowed to place their views on record, while members of the ruling benches were given extended time.
A specific reference was made to February 2, when Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi was allegedly not allowed to complete his speech during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address. The opposition said this reflected a consistent pattern in which the Leader of the Opposition was almost invariably denied adequate opportunity to speak in the House.
The notice also cited the suspension of eight opposition MPs on February 3 for the remainder of the Budget Session. The opposition described the suspensions as arbitrary and said the MPs were being penalised merely for exercising their democratic rights inside Parliament.
Another major allegation relates to remarks made by Speaker Om Birla, in which he claimed to have “concrete information” suggesting that some Congress MPs might move towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s seat and carry out an “unexpected act.” The Speaker had reportedly requested the Prime Minister not to come to the House on that day.
Opposition parties termed these remarks blatantly false and derogatory, arguing that they cast unfounded suspicion on elected representatives. They said the Speaker’s decision to make such statements on the floor of the House amounted to an abuse of a constitutional office that is expected to remain impartial and uphold parliamentary decorum.
Congress leaders said the decision to move the notice was finalised during a meeting held on Monday at the residence of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. The meeting reviewed recent parliamentary developments and what the opposition described as a pattern of selective interventions by the Chair that favoured the ruling side.
While no-confidence motions against a Speaker are rare and face significant procedural hurdles, opposition leaders said the step was necessary to defend democratic norms and parliamentary traditions.