In a rare display of procedural leniency amid escalating parliamentary tensions, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has directed the House secretariat to correct errors in the opposition-submitted notice seeking his removal and proceed with it, rather than outright rejecting it. The decision comes as Birla announced he would abstain from presiding over House proceedings until the motion is resolved, citing moral grounds.
The notice, submitted on February 10 by opposition parties under the INDI Alliance bloc and led by Congress, accuses Birla of “blatantly partisan” conduct and abuse of his constitutional office. Signed by 118 MPs, it invokes Article 94(c) of the Indian Constitution, which allows for the Speaker’s removal through a resolution passed by a majority of the House members.
Shortcomings have been found in the notice submitted by opposition MPs seeking the removal of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. The notice reportedly mentions the events of February 2025 four times, on the basis of which it could have been rejected as per the rules. However, the… pic.twitter.com/L4qOqOgu4X
— ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2026
However, the document contained multiple factual inaccuracies, repeatedly referencing events in “2 February 2025” instead of the correct date 2 February 2026, an error that appeared four times. The speaker could have rejected the faulty notice for the motion under standard rules.
Despite these mistakes, Birla instructed the secretariat to rectify the dates and proceed with the motion expeditiously. The motion will be listed after the commencement of the Budget Session’s second phase.
“The notice will be listed after the commencement of the second phase of the Budget Session. After receiving the revised notice, it will be examined promptly as per the prescribed rules,” said Lok Sabha Secretariat Sources.
The grievances mentioned in the notice stem from recent disruptions during the Budget Session. On February 2, 2026, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi tried to cite a passage from an article in Caravan magazine, which purportedly was from an unpublished book by General MM Naravane. As it was not allowed as per rules, the opposition MPs disrupted the house for days.
The disruption was so severe that PM Narendra Modi’s reply to the motion of thanks to the president’s address in Lok Sabha was cancelled, as the speaker had credible information that opposition MPs were planning to physically hackle him during the address. Congress party have denied these allegations.
These incidents have led to the non-confidence motion against the speaker brought by the opposition parties. The motion will be symbolic as National Democratic Alliance (NDA) holds a majority of 293 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha. Moreover, not all INDI Alliance parties are unified in the effort. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) refrained from signing the notice, with leader Abhishek Banerjee insisting on first addressing grievances directly to the Speaker and allowing time for response before escalating to a no-confidence motion. Speaker is also likely to get support from parties which as not part of any of the two alliances.
