Parliament’s Monsoon Session Off to Stormy Start; Process Set in Motion to Remove Justice Varma

PTI | July 21, 2025  | New Delhi : The Monsoon session of Parliament began on a stormy note on Monday as the opposition forced repeated adjournments in the Lok Sabha, demanding an immediate discussion on Operation Sindoor and other issues, while a process was set in motion in both Houses for Justice Yashwant Varma’s removal over burnt wads of cash found at his residence here.

A notice for the judge’s removal with signatures of 63 opposition members was filed with the Rajya Sabha Chairman, and another was submitted to the Lok Sabha Speaker — a bipartisan effort with 152 members, including Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, supporting the move.

In his customary remarks in Parliament complex before the session’s start, Prime Minister Narendra Modi set the ruling alliance’s tone for an expected discussion on Operation Sindoor, describing this sitting of parliamentarians as a “Vijay Utsav” and expressing confidence that MPs will articulate this sentiment in one voice.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Health Minister J. P. Nadda told the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, respectively, that the government was ready for a debate on Operation Sindoor and there was no question of running away, after the opposition members protested against not listing the matter for discussion immediately.

“We will definitely discuss it. Every aspect of Operation Sindoor will be presented before the country and the world. Since Independence, no such operation has ever been carried out like the one conducted under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi,” Nadda said in the Upper House where Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge raised the issue.

On the opening day of the session, parliamentarians also submitted notices for removal of Justice Yashwant Varma of the Allahabad High Court to the presiding officers of the two Houses of Parliament.

Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar set the process rolling for removal of Justice Varma, at whose Delhi residence burnt wads of currency notes were found in March, by mentioning in the House the receipt of the notice in this regard from members. Dhankhar mentioned the notice that was signed by 63 members of the opposition.

A bipartisan delegation of Lok Sabha members submitted a notice for removal of Justice Varma to Speaker Om Birla with signatures from 152 members, including Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi.

On Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal’s confirmation that a notice has also been submitted in the Lok Sabha, Dhankhar asked the Secretary General to “take necessary steps in this direction”.

Dhankhar said according to the Judges (Inquiry) Act, when notices of a motion are submitted on the same day in both the Houses of Parliament, a committee to examine the charges levelled against the judge will be constituted jointly by the Lok Sabha Speaker and the Rajya Sabha Chairman.

Both Houses, sources said, may accept the motions on Tuesday, and their Chairs are likely to jointly initiate formalities for the constitution of an inquiry committee in accordance with the Judges (Inquiry) Act.

In the Lok Sabha, several opposition leaders, including Congress Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi, had submitted notices to move adjournment motion to seek a discussion on Operation Sindoor, which was turned down by Speaker Om Birla.

The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes soon after the Speaker read out the obituary references as opposition members trooped to the Well of the House seeking to raise the issue of Operation Sindoor and demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi reply in the House.

The Speaker called for the Question Hour, but had to adjourn the proceedings till 12 noon as the protests continued. Similar scenes were witnessed at noon, when the House re-assembled. BJP member Jagdambika Pal, who was in the chair, adjourned the proceedings till 2 PM after laying of parliamentary papers on the table of the House.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju appealed to the opposition members to allow the House to function.

“The government is ready to reply to all the issues that the Speaker agrees to at the BAC meeting. But to raise slogans and not let the House function on the first day of the Monsoon session is unacceptable,” Rijiju said in the House.

The scenes were no different at 2 PM, and BJP member Sandhya Ray, who was in the chair, adjourned the proceedings for the third time till 4 PM. The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day after it re-assembled at 4 PM by BJP’s Dilip Saikia, who was in the chair.

Meanwhile, a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of the Lok Sabha, chaired by Speaker Om Birla, allocated 16 hours for a special discussion on Operation Sindoor, which is expected to be taken up next week, sources said.

The Rajya Sabha passed The Bills of Lading Bill, 2025 aimed to update and simplify the legal framework for shipping documents. The Lok Sabha had passed the bill in March.

In his remarks outside Parliament, Modi lauded a number of positive developments for the country and asserted that the Constitution is prevailing over bombs and guns.

As Naxalism’s footprint shrinks fast, the red zone is turning into a green growth zone, he added.

“This Monsoon session is a very proud session for the country. It is like a ‘Vijay Utsav’ (celebration of victory) for the nation. The world witnessed the capability of armed forces. They achieved their targets 100 per cent,” he said.

He also noted that the Indian flag was unfurled recently at the International Space Station, a reference to Shubhanshu Shukla becoming the first Indian to set foot on the facility.

With the INDIA bloc uniting to demand a debate on the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor and seizing on US President Donald Trump’s claims of mediating a “ceasefire” between India and Pakistan to corner his government, Modi hailed the armed forces for meeting 100 per cent objectives of the military operation.

He also lauded the multi-party delegations that visited various parts of the world to convey India’s position post-Operation Sindoor for their efforts in removing the veil from the face of the master of terrorists — Pakistan.