PM Modi to respond to Motion of Thanks in Lok Sabha today

On the first day of the budget session, President Droupadi Murmu addressed both the Houses of Parliament.

The President's speech had drawn sharp criticisms from Congress, the country's primary opposition party.

Congress top leader Sonia Gandhi stirred a row calling the President "poor lady" and a "poor thing" criticising Murmu's address which by tradition upholds the central government's works.

Reacting to Murmu's address to the joint sitting of parliament, Sonia said, "The poor lady. The president was getting very tired by the end... No, she could hardly speak, the poor thing." (sic)

A group of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs moved a breach of parliamentary privilege notice against Congress MP Sonia Gandhi on Monday, alleging the use of "derogatory and slanderous words" to describe President Droupadi Murmu after she addressed a joint session of Parliament last week.

The comments, the MPs alleged, were meant to "lower the dignity of the highest office".

The Lok Sabha witnessed a war of words between the Treasury bench and the Opposition after Congress MP Rahul Gandhi targeted the government and claimed that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar was sent to the inauguration of Donald Trump as US President to ensure a US invite for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

BJP MPs, led by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, strongly objected to his remark and said he could not make such unsubstantiated statements.

Jaishankar criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and dismissed his claims that the Indian government sent him to the US to secure an invitation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend Donald Trump's swearing-in ceremony.

In his strong rebuttal to Gandhi's claims, Jaishankar said the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha deliberately spoke a 'falsehood' about his visits to the USA in December last year.