BJP MP Nishikant Dubey has for the second consecutive day targeted leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of being "hand in glove" with billionaire US philanthropist George Soros and sparking an uproar that led to the adjournment of Lok Sabha proceedings.
The Congress, too, continued its protests outside Parliament, demanding "accountability" from industrialist Gautam Adani.
Rahul Gandhi, his sister and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Opposition members marched on the Parliament premises wearing black masks that read "Modi Adani bhai bhai". The protests occurred before the House proceedings began.
"The government is scared of holding a discussion in Parliament on Adani," Priyanka told reporters as the Congress and other Opposition MPs raised slogans demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe into the bribery charges on Adani and others in the US.
On Thursday, the BJP launched a coordinated attack inside and outside Parliament, accusing Rahul and the Congress of conspiring with foreign entities to destabilise the Narendra Modi government. In the Lok Sabha, Dubey led the charge, insinuating that Rahul and his party had links with Soros, who, according to the BJP leader, was attempting to undermine the Indian economy.
Dubey, the MP from Godda in Jharkhand, took to the floor during Zero Hour, beginning with the slogan: "Congress ka haath Soros ke saath (Congress is hand in glove with Soros)." Opposition MPs who were protesting demanded action against Dubey for his "defamatory" remarks against Rahul. Amid the uproar, Dubey managed to speak for less than a minute before the House was adjourned for the day.
"The Congress is hand in glove with George Soros. Did Soros pay for Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra or not?" Dubey posted on X, attaching a video of himself speaking in the House. "Soros paid for 1,000 Indian children to study abroad, how many of them are children of Congress leaders?" he asked.
Earlier, as the Lok Sabha assembled for the day at 11am, Congress MPs stood in protest demanding action against Dubey for his attack on Rahul on Thursday. "Sir, you were witness to what had happened yesterday…. All the MPs from this side need justice…. We all need a ruling from you," K.C. Venugopal, the Alappuzha MP and the Congress general secretary in charge of organisation, urged Speaker Om Birla.
Birla refused to entertain their plea, saying it was Question Hour and rules do not allow such issues to be taken up. As the members refused to relent, the Speaker adjourned the House.