Rahul Gandhi challenges PM Modi over Naravane memoir, dares him to face Lok Sabha

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on February 4 sharpened his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, challenging him to come to the Lok Sabha and accept a copy of former Army Chief General M M Naravane’s memoir, which Gandhi claims contains critical details on the Ladakh standoff with China.

Standing in the Parliament complex with the memoir in hand, Gandhi said he did not believe the Prime Minister had “the guts” to attend the House. “If the PM comes, I will physically go and hand him this book so that he can read it and the country can know the truth,” he said.

The challenge comes a day after eight Opposition MPs were suspended from the Lok Sabha following uproarious scenes in the House, triggered when Gandhi was disallowed from reading excerpts from Naravane’s memoir during proceedings. The confrontation marked a fresh escalation in tensions between the government and the Opposition.

‘Entire account of Ladakh in this book’

Appealing to young people across the country to read the memoir, Gandhi said the book offers a detailed account of events in Ladakh. “I have been told I cannot quote from this book. The key line is what the Prime Minister said — jo uchit samjho wo karo (do what you think is right),” he said.

Gandhi alleged that when Chinese tanks reached the Kailash Range, General Naravane sought guidance from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the National Security Adviser, but received no immediate response. “Rajnath Singh later said he would ask the ‘top’,” Gandhi claimed.

‘Modi did not fulfil his responsibility’

According to Gandhi, standing orders required permission before opening fire, even after Chinese forces had crossed into Indian territory. “The Army wanted to fire on those tanks,” he said, adding that the Prime Minister’s message — jo uchit samjho wo karo — amounted to abdication of responsibility. Quoting the memoir, Gandhi said Naravane felt “really alone” and “abandoned by the entire establishment”.

The remarks follow February 3 face-off in the Lok Sabha, when Gandhi attempted to raise national security concerns based on excerpts from Naravane’s unpublished memoir, Four Stars of Destiny, portions of which appeared in a recent Caravan essay. The Chair cut short his intervention, citing directions against quoting from the book.

In protest, Opposition MPs entered the Well and threw papers towards the Speaker’s podium, leading to the suspension of seven Congress MPs — Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Hibi Eden, Dean Kuriakose, Prasant Padole, Kiren Kumar Reddy and Manickam Tagore — along with CPI(M) leader S Venkatesan.

With Gandhi’s open dare to the Prime Minister, the parliamentary standoff over the memoir and the Ladakh issue shows no signs of easing.