Budget 2026 Highlights: PM ran away, says Rahul Gandhi after chaos over Naravane memoir

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On Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s statement in Parliament, Congress MP Jebi Mather said national security was of prime importance and alleged that the treasury benches were deliberately preventing Rahul Gandhi from speaking on the issue.

She said the BJP and the ruling dispensation did not want the Opposition leader to speak because, according to her, “when Rahul Gandhi speaks, he speaks the truth,” which makes the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister uncomfortable. Mather added that Rahul Gandhi himself had said in the Lok Sabha that the government was uneasy with the facts he was presenting, and questioned what the ruling party was trying to hide from the people of the country.

On Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s statement in Parliament, Samajwadi Party MP Rajeev Kumar Rai said that decades after Jawaharlal Nehru’s death, BJP leaders - from the lowest ranks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi - continue to criticise him relentlessly.

Rai said that the Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Home Minister were present in the House and had every right to respond if they found Rahul Gandhi’s remarks objectionable. “They could have proven him wrong. But they would not let him speak or quote from the book. They would not let him say anything at all,” he said, adding that the government’s actions showed it was afraid of the truth and trying to hide something from the people.

On Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s statement inside Parliament, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said, “Why do we have a government that is afraid of discussion? It’s really a pity. I think the government should not have reacted this way. They should have encouraged a discussion, cleared the air, and clarified things. The entire issue of China is a matter of great concern to the nation. There should be a full discussion on China. The Foreign Affairs Minister, Defence Minister - let them all speak and let the people know what’s going on. Don’t have a situation where everything is brushed under the carpet. That is not healthy for our democracy. It is not healthy for the functioning of Parliament.”

On Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s statement inside Parliament, Union Minister Giriraj Singh said, “Rahul Gandhi disrespected the House. He should also have spoken about the conversations he had at the Chinese Embassy.”

After Parliament was adjourned for the day, Rahul Gandhi said he merely wanted to repeat what the former Chief of Army Staff had said in his book, which he claimed the Centre was not allowing to be published, and to highlight the directions given in 2020 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Galwan clash.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day after Rahul Gandhi once again stood firm on his assertions over former Army chief Naravane’s unpublished memoir when Parliament resumed for the third time.

Rahul Gandhi said that the fact that ministers in the Narendra Modi government were not letting him speak showed that they were uncomfortable.

After the House resumed following two adjournments over Rahul Gandhi’s speech in the past hour, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were no longer present.

To counter Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's claims, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday shared an old media byte by former Army Chief General MM Naravane (R), from the time he was still in service, wherein he had strongly asserted that no part of Indian territory was lost to the Chinese and that status quo was still intact.

Following the uproar in Lok Sabha over Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi's attempts to invoke certain purported excerpts from an unpublished "memoir" of former Army Chief General MM Naravane (R), BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya said in a post on X: "Rahul Gandhi has once again chosen to misuse parliamentary privilege to malign the Indian Armed Forces and place India’s national security narrative under a cloud of suspicion."

The din on Monday took place as the Lok Sabha debated over the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju addressed the media following the high-octane ruckus in Lok Sabha over Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's attempts to invoke certain purported excerpts from an unpublished book authored by former Indian Army Chief General MM Naravane (R).

He said, "Right from the beginning [of his speech], Rahul Gandhi flouted rules and started quoting from a book whose publication and authenticity is not clearly mentioned. Defence Minister and all of us said that the House will function as per rules and one should speak as per rules... One cannot challenge the Chair."

Parliament was adjourned once again after resuming for just 10 minutes, as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi stood by his earlier claims citing unpublished memoirs of former Army Chief General Manoj Naravane. The House is adjourned till 4 pm.

Chaos continued in the Lok Sabha on Monday as Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi resumed his address following an earlier adjournment over disruptions. Returning to the floor, Gandhi reiterated points from the unpublished memoirs of former Army Chief General Manoj Naravane, drawing attention to India’s defence preparedness. He claimed that Chinese forces had approached with tanks, highlighting what he described as security challenges along the border.

The resumption of Gandhi’s speech came after the Speaker called the House back to order, following uproar and protests from Treasury benches over the earlier use of the memoir excerpts.

The Union Budget’s focus on the Orange Economy is a positive step for India’s creative sectors like animation, gaming, and digital content, says Vivek Surve, Founder of Oreo One Digital. He adds that its success will depend on effective skill development, funding, and global market access.

Rajiv Bahl, Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), on Monday welcomed the Union Budget 2026-27, highlighting its focus on innovation, research, and development in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors.

"The Budget particularly focuses on innovation and research in the pharmaceutical sector, healthcare, and drug manufacturing, all of which are critical. The allocation for the Department of Health Research has increased from Rs 3,900 crore to over Rs 4,820 crore, a 24% increase. The 'Bio-Pharma Shakti' announced in the Budget will be very important in taking forward the dream of Viksit Bharat. This scheme aims to further develop the country's biopharma sector. A big step has been taken to overcome the shortcomings in the regulator in the pharma sector. Another big step taken is to establish 1000 clinical trial sites in the country under the Indian Council of Medical Research. ICMR, CDSCO and the Department of Pharmaceuticals will contribute towards the transformation and revolution in biopharma. Medicines for cancer treatment have been exempted from customs duty," he said.

Dr Lubna Kamal, Homeopathic Nephrologist at the Nano Homeopathy Institute of Research and Welfare, on Monday raised concerns over India's health budget, saying it lacks a clear focus on preventive care.

"India's health budget still lacks a clear commitment to preventive care. Nearly 60% of deaths in India are due to non-communicable diseases, driven largely by uncontrolled blood pressure and blood sugar. Hypertension affects one in three adults, while diabetes impacts over 100 million Indians. These two factors alone account for the majority of kidney failure, strokes, and heart attacks. Yet there is no dedicated budget for nationwide preventive screening. Blood pressure and blood sugar test, together will cost less than Rs 2 or Rs 5, while treating kidney failure or cardiac disease costs lakhs. Early detection could save millions of lives—and billions in healthcare spending," Kamal said

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram on Monday criticised the Union Budget 2026, questioning the government’s claims that it set the stage for India’s development by 2047.

""If this is going to be the takeoff flight for 2047, what about the earlier budgets which the same Finance Minister gave? Were they not 'take off' budgets? These budgets have now become the exercises of ground announcements. Everybody gets taken in by these grand announcements without really pausing to think about what happened to the ground announcements made previously in the previous budgets by the same govt...This budget is full of many announcements which will never get fulfilled," he said. 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday defended BJP MP Tejasvi Surya in the Lok Sabha, saying that during his speech on the Union Budget 2026, Surya had not questioned the character or patriotism of the Opposition.

Shah’s remarks came amid ongoing debates and disruptions in the House, where Opposition members had objected to parts of Surya’s speech.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi following a ruckus in the Lok Sabha over Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi quoting excerpts from the unpublished memoirs of former Army Chief General Manoj Naravane. The meeting came amid repeated disruptions in the House, where Treasury benches objected to the references used by Gandhi during the debate on the President’s Address and the Union Budget 2026.

Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also held discussions with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to review the situation and coordinate measures to restore order in the proceedings.