Congress recalls Manmohan Singh blocked from speech in 2004

Amid the ongoing government–opposition standoff in the Lok Sabha, the Congress on Thursday recalled that the BJP had stopped then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from speaking on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address on June 10, 2004. Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh shared a video on X of Singh’s March 10, 2005 speech, in which the former prime minister referred to being denied the opportunity to reply to the Motion of Thanks in 2004.

On Wednesday night, Ramesh said the Congress wanted to recall the June 10, 2004 incident when the BJP stopped the then prime minister from speaking on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address. He noted that on March 10, 2005, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh opened his speech on the Motion of Thanks by calling it a privilege to stand in the House and express the government’s gratitude to the President for the address to both Houses of Parliament.

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Congress shares 2005 Manmohan Singh clip to counter government amid Parliament logjam

The incident took place soon after the UPA government assumed office in 2004, when the BJP disrupted proceedings and stopped the Prime Minister from replying to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address. The Congress cited the episode to challenge the ruling BJP amid the current deadlock, arguing that the opposition at the time did not allow the Prime Minister to speak. Jairam Ramesh highlighted the incident on social media as an example of past parliamentary disruption, according to Times of India. The charge surfaced amid reports of a broader and tense political standoff in the Lok Sabha, Deccan Chronicle reported. Ramesh recalled that Singh had described the moment as a hard-earned privilege, saying he had waited an entire year to perform the task and used the opportunity to thank the President for both the previous year’s address and the current one.

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