PEGASUS...

trouble escalated when defence minister Rajnath Singh brought The Essential Defence Services Bill for approval of the Upper House. When Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh cited House rule no. 110 to disallow CPI(M)’s Elamaram Kareem from speaking on Pegasus, a furious Opposition started protesting and received unexpected support from TRS lawmaker K Kesava Rao.

Rao told Harivansh, “You have the right to regulate the time. You can’t give me a scripted speech and tell me to read it. I can speak sense and nonsense in this House. It is my right. Now when Kareem is talking about defence and about the secrecy of defence, Pegasus can also be mentioned.”

Kareem also argued that Pegasus is related to defence and security. RJD MP Manoj Jha too, mentioned Pegasus, prompting Harivansh to intervene, but the Trinamool Congress cited freedom of speech of the Constitution. There was also an exchange between Singh and Kharge, with the Congress leader claiming that the former said he would try and resolve the issue after his return from Tajikistan. “If there was a proposal from the government about a meeting whether it is the parliamentary affairs minister or Rajnath Singh, we are ready for the discussion,” Kharge added.

Singh denied having given any assurance. He said, “I want to make it very clear; I gave no such assurance to Mr. Kharge. However, I called him and requested that there should be peace in the House, that the House should function normally and that all important issues should be discussed.”

The government also hit out at the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for an attempt by some of the suspended MPs to enter the House after it was adjourned on Wednesday. Speaking to media, parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi said the TMC MPs should apologise for their conduct in the House because while trying to force their entry into the chambers, they caused injury to a female security guard of Parliament.