Congress leader urges LS Speaker to lift unfair suspension of 8 MPs

Congress leader K C Venugopal on Monday urged Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to revoke the suspension of eight opposition MPs, terming it "unfair" and a worrying new trend in Parliament.

Speaking during Zero Hour , Venugopal highlighted that while Parliament has seen numerous protests over the years, the suspension of members for their conduct marks a “disturbing new trend” that cannot continue. However, Speaker Birla interrupted the proceedings , noting that the suspension decision cannot be debated on the floor of the House, and disallowed him from speaking further.

Later, Venugopal took to X to reiterate his stance, emphasizing that the suspended MPs should be reinstated immediately. He wrote, “Parliament has seen countless protests but the suspension of MPs is a disturbing new trend, which cannot be allowed to continue. This suspension should be revoked immediately.”

The eight MPs were suspended during the first part of the Budget Session for "unruly" behaviour and barred from participating for the entire session. They include Gurjeet Singh Auja, Hibi Eden, C Kiran Kumar Reddy, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Prashant Padole, Dean Kuriakose (all Congress) and S Ventakesan (CPI-M).

These members have been protesting against the government on various issues while seated on the steps of Parliament's Makar Dwar , with several opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra , joining them at different times to express solidarity.

The incident has stirred debate over the growing trend of suspending MPs for protest actions, raising questions about parliamentary norms and dissent in the country’s highest legislative forum.