NEW DELHI: Congress on Wednesday said that the bigger issue was that leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha rather than the prime minister not being able to do so, as the PM’s reply depended on questions raised by the LoP, and without them, no debate could take place. Speaking to reporters after a meeting of Congress floor leaders, senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said, “If the LoP does not speak, what is the point of a debate? The prime minister replies to the debate. If the debate hasn’t taken place, what will the PM speak on?”

He added, “We know the prime minister will make an election-style speech. That is what he has been doing for the last 11 years. He will criticise the Congress and its leadership, and target Nehru. But a proper debate starts with the LoP, who has not been allowed to speak.”The meeting at Rajya Sabha member Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence was attended by Ramesh, Congress general secretary in-charge of organisation K C Venugopal, Pramod Tewari, Manickam Tagore and other leaders.Later, Ramesh wrote on X, “To recall and remind, on June 10, 2004, the prime minister was prevented by the BJP from speaking on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address.”The Lok Sabha saw dramatic scenes on Wednesday as women opposition MPs marched towards the Treasury benches holding banners just before Prime Minister Modi’s scheduled reply. The MPs blocked the seats in the treasury bench, including the seat of the Prime Minister. Following this, the speaker adjourned the House, cancelling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s response to the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address.