Centre Shelves Action Plan Against Rahul

Briefing the media, Rijiju said the Speaker will be consulted on whether to send the matter to the House privilege committee, the ethics committee, or bring the substantive motion against Gandhi directly to the Lok Sabha.

"It has not yet been decided," Rijiju said while noting that since a private member has already submitted a notice for the motion, the government will refrain from introducing its own motion.

Dubey on Thursday said that he has given a notice to initiate a substantive motion against Gandhi, demanding the cancellation of his Lok Sabha membership and calling for him to be barred from contesting elections for life.

The BJP said that in his notice, he has stated how the Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition visits foreign countries, joining hands with the Soros Foundation, USAID and Ford Foundation, and "colludes" with anti-India elements.

Meanwhile, Union ministers Piyush Goyal and Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday rejected allegations by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi that the India-US interim trade deal compromised farmers’ interests, well past midnight asserting that the agreement fully safeguards the agriculture sector

The rebuttal followed a video message posted by Gandhi on X, in which he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being “anti-farmer” and “selling” the country through the trade deal.

Commerce and industry minister Goyal said, “In a video released today, he (Gandhi) has surpassed all limits in making false statements and levelling unfounded allegations. He is misleading farmers with a fabricated narrative and attempting to provoke our annadatas. He has never demonstrated concern for the nation, nor can we expect him to contribute to building a strong and prosperous India,”

The BJP continued its attack on the Congress leader over his conduct during the first leg of the Budget Session of Parliament, alleging that Gandhi is "anarchic, undemocratic and politically uncivilised". The party also termed the Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition a "statement warrior", who finds "new excuses" to paralyse the proceedings of the House. The ruling party alleged that the Congress leader speaks “falsehood in the most unabashed manner.”

“Gandhi shows no accountability. What does he want? He neither understands India nor its politics. Otherwise, he would not have shamed its democratic traditions like this…. Congress's conduct clearly demonstrates that Gandhi himself disregards the democratic process and integrity and constitutional and parliamentary decorum. He's already ruined his party… The whole political conduct of Gandhi is becoming an embodiment of anarchy,” said senior party leader Ravi Shankar.

Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan also slammed the Congress leader. “Inventing a new excuse every day to disrupt Parliament is no longer the Congress's working style; it has become its identity. In every session, the same script is repeated – uproar, noise, lies, and a deliberate violation of democratic norms. Even as the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi has chosen the path of chaos over responsibility," he posted on X in Hindi.

Pradhan said the politics of 'speak lies and keep repeating them" is no longer just a habit for Gandhi but his “political identity, which has turned him into a symbol of incredulity in Indian politics”.

“Gandhi and the Congress do not believe in the Constitution, democracy, the democratic system, parliamentary procedures, or the people's right to vote," the Union minister added.

The Lok Sabha witnessed dramatic scenes and repeated adjournments from February 2 afternoon after the Chair disallowed Gandhi from quoting from the excerpts of the unpublished memoir of former Army chief Gen. M.M Naravane (Retd.) relating to the India-China conflict of 2020. The House proceedings were also disrupted, as Gandhi also accused the Modi government of surrendering before the US on the trade deal.