06/02/2026
“In a rare and unprecedented development since 2004, the Lok Sabha on February 5, 2026 approved the Motion of Thanks to President Droupadi Murmu’s Budget Session address without the customary reply from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as persistent disruptions and sloganeering by opposition MPs led to repeated adjournments. The motion was ultimately passed by voice vote amid heightened political tensions, drawing criticism over parliamentary procedure and evoking comparisons with a similar episode in 2004, when then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was also unable to respond.”