New Delhi (Agency): Derek O’Brien, a Member of Parliament (MP) from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), has sent a letter to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, demanding that his entire speech from July 20 be officially recorded. His plea comes after parts of his speech, which questioned the government’s handling of the ongoing crisis in Manipur, were removed.
“Some parts of my speech on July 20 were deleted by the Presiding Officer,” O’Brien wrote. He added that his removed remarks were part of a just effort, as the leader of one of the Rajya Sabha’s largest opposition parties, to challenge the Prime Minister and the ruling government on the concerning situation in Manipur.
The MP clarified that his comments were within the spirit of democracy and not at all ‘Unparliamentary’. “I simply asked the Prime Minister to address the Manipur situation in Parliament,” he stated.
O’Brien also shed light on a recent booklet issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat. The booklet lists words and phrases considered “unparliamentary,” including commonly used expressions like ashamed, abused, betrayed, corrupt, drama, hypocrisy, and incompetent.
Taking a closer look, O’Brien pointed out that many of these words have been used by the opposition in recent years to criticize the central government. This led him to argue that categorizing such words as “anti-union” or “unparliamentary” is a clear effort to suppress the opposition’s voice.
“The problem is not that the Constitution does not ensure free speech, but that free speech is easily silenced due to laws like this,” O’Brien said. As a result of these factors, he demanded that the Chairman include his full speech in the official record.
The escalating crisis in Manipur has been a focal point of friction between the opposition and the government since the Monsoon session of Parliament began on Monday.
