5 Rahul Gandhi Utterances Expunged from Parliament Records And Why

New Delhi: The five major controversial statements made by Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, including his ‘Hindus are violent’ remark have been expunged from the parliamentary records. 

Addressing the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, Gandhi covered a range of topics to target the NDA camp, including that of minorities, the Agniveer Scheme, Ambani-Adani and Hindus. 

Such was the commotion over his remarks that Prime Minister Narendra Modi intervened to slam the former for calling the entire Hindu community ‘violent.’

“All our great men have spoken about non-violence and finishing fear...But, those who call themselves Hindu only talk about violence, hatred, untruth…Aap Hindu ho hi nahi,” said Gandhi, to which PM Modi countered by saying, “Calling the entire Hindu society violent is a serious issue.” 

The 5 Rahul Utterances Expunged Amid Row

• EXPUNGED: "Those who call themselves Hindu only talk about violence, hatred, untruth…Aap Hindu ho hi nahi…"
• EXPUNGED: “The people of Ayodhya got upset after BJP invited Adani-Ambani but not the locals to the inauguration of the Ram Temple.” 
• EXPUNGED: "One Agniveer lost his life in a landmine blast but he is not called a ‘martyr’. Agniveer is a use-and-throw labourer..."  
• EXPUNGED:  “The idea of the Agniveer scheme came from the PMO, not the Indian Army, and it was the brainchild of the Prime Minister, similar to demonetisation.” 
• EXPUNGED: “The entire exam in Kota has been centralised. The arrangements have been made to favour the rich.” 

Why Speeches Were Expunged? 

The decision to expunge or remove a part of the speech from the parliamentary record lies with the Presiding Officer of the House. The Indian Constitution, under Article 105(2), lays out the provision for MPs to enjoy immunity from court proceedings for their statements in Parliament. But their speeches are subject to the discipline of the Rules of Parliament, the "good sense" of its Members, and the control of proceedings by the Speaker.

Rajnath Singh Corrects Rahul 

Taking objection to LoP Rahul Gandhi's statement that the ‘martyred’ Agniveer was not given any compensation, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh claimed that the Congress leader is misleading the house by making incorrect and baseless statements on Agniveers.  

“He Rahul Gandhi) should not try to mislead the House by making wrong statements. Financial assistance of Rs one crore is given to the family of the Agniveer who sacrifices his life while protecting our borders or during war,” said Singh.  

Rahul's ‘Minority’ Remark Expunged Too

The part of the speech has been expunged from the Parliament record where Rahul Gandhi alleged that failures of the government on various fronts were because the BJP-RSS family was obsessed with spreading fear among different sections of the population, including the political class in the opposition, and perpetuating hate against minorities, farmers, Dalits and backward classes.  

Besides PM Modi, who intervened twice to counter the Congress leader, at least five cabinet ministers including Kiren Rijiju, Rajnath Singh and others interjected during his speech, with Home Minister Amit Shah demanding an apology from him.

Rahul Gandhi Refuses to Apologise

Even after the nationwide outrage over his remarks insulting the Hindus, the Congress leader remained defiant and refused to apologise for his ‘anti-Hindu’ remarks in the Lok Sabha. 

Reacting to the parts of his speech expunged, Gandhi said, "In Modi ji's world, truth can be expunged. But in reality, the truth can't be expunged. I said what I had to say, that is the truth. They can expunge as much as they want. Truth is truth."