By: The Trek News Desk
The Lok Sabha on Thursday, February 5, 2026, adopted the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address amid intense protests and sloganeering by Opposition members. Owing to the continued disruption, Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not deliver the customary reply to the debate in the House.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla first placed the amendments moved by Opposition parties to the Motion of Thanks for voting. All the proposed changes were rejected. The Speaker then read out the Motion expressing gratitude for the President’s address to both Houses of Parliament delivered on January 28, and declared it passed through a voice vote despite the ongoing commotion.
As the uproar continued unabated, the Speaker adjourned the proceedings until 2:00 pm.
Amid the ongoing standoff between the government and the Opposition, the Congress party sought to draw a historical parallel, recalling events from 2004. The party pointed out that on June 10, 2004, then Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh was also unable to reply to the Motion of Thanks due to sustained protests by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, shared a video on social media platform X from March 10, 2005, in which Dr Singh referred to the delay in getting an opportunity to respond to the Motion of Thanks. In that speech, Singh had mentioned that he had to wait an entire year to perform what he described as a “privileged” parliamentary duty, while thanking the President for both the previous and the current year’s addresses.
The developments followed dramatic scenes in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, when women Opposition MPs carrying banners moved towards the Prime Minister’s seat, forcing the House to be adjourned for the day.
At the time, Prime Minister Modi was not present in the House, and BJP MP P.P. Chaudhary was participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks. Government floor managers had earlier indicated that the Prime Minister would respond to the discussion at around 5:00 pm.
However, after multiple adjournments, when proceedings resumed, and presiding officer Sandhya Rai invited Chaudhary to continue his remarks, women Opposition members entered the Well of the House. Their protest was aimed at the proposed trade agreement with the United States and issues linked to an unpublished book by former Army Chief M.M. Naravane.
As Opposition MPs moved closer to the Treasury benches and the Prime Minister’s seat, the presiding officer adjourned the House for the remainder of the day.
Despite the turbulence, the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address was ultimately passed. Nevertheless, the absence of the Prime Minister’s traditional reply has underscored the deepening political confrontation between the government and the Opposition in Parliament.
Source: News Agencies
