The Opposition on Tuesday submitted a notice indicating its intention to move a no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, citing the “blatantly partisan manner” of conducting proceedings in the House.

“On several occasions, leaders of Opposition parties have just not been allowed to speak, which is their democratic right in Parliament,” the notice said.

According to Article 94 of the Constitution, a Lok Sabha speaker can be removed if the House passes a no-confidence resolution. However, a 14-day notice needs to be given indicating the intention to move the resolution.

Birla on Tuesday asked the secretariat to “examine the notice and expedite the process”, PTI reported.

About 120 Opposition MPs had signed the notice, according to the news agency. Members of the Trinamool Congress were not among them.

The Opposition MPs cited several grievances with Birla.

They noted that on February 2, Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was not allowed to complete his speech on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address. Gandhi is “almost invariably not allowed to speak”, they added.

The notice said that on February 3, eight Opposition MPs were “arbitrarily suspended” for the remainder of the Budget Session and “are being penalised merely for exercising their democratic rights”.

The MPs had been suspended after they allegedly tore up papers and threw them at the speaker’s chair.

The Opposition was protesting against Gandhi not being allowed to quote an excerpt of an unpublished memoir of former Indian Army chief MM Naravane about the political decision-making during the 2020 border tensions between India and China.

On February 4, a Bharatiya Janata Party MP was “permitted to make wholly objectionable and personalised attacks” about two former prime ministers “without being reprimanded even once despite disregarding established conventions and norms of propriety”, the Opposition said.

“In spite of our request, no action has been taken against this particular Member of Parliament, who is a habitual offender,” the notice said.

The Opposition also quoted Birla as having claimed on February 5 that he had received information that Congress MPs were approaching the prime minister’s chair in the Lok Sabha and could cause an unexpected mishap. Birla was quoted as saying that to ensure such a situation does not arise, he had urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to come to the House.

The prime minister was expected to respond in the Lower House to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address. However, the proceedings had been adjourned for the day because of protests by the Opposition.

The motion was passed by the House the next day without Modi’s reply.

Birla’s remarks “cast blatantly false allegations” against Congress MPs and are derogatory in nature, the Opposition said. The speaker making the comments on the floor of the House was “indicative of an abuse” of his constitutional office, read the notice.

In an apparent error, the notice submitted by the Opposition mentioned the events as having taken place on dates in February 2025, not February 2026.

Birla became the speaker in 2019. He retained the post in 2024, when the Opposition forced an election for the speaker’s position for the first time in several decades.

Trinamool Congress not a signatory

The Trinamool Congress did not sign the notice for the no-confidence motion, saying that it wants to pursue a “constructive and calibrated” approach, The Hindu reported.

Party leader Abhishek Banerjee was quoted as saying that the speaker should first act on the Opposition's grievances. “And if he doesn’t act, then we can unitedly move a no-confidence motion,” he said.

On Monday, West Bengal’s ruling party said it would appeal to Birla to consider revoking the suspension of the eight Opposition MPs, saying that Parliament must function smoothly and that the Opposition should be allowed to speak.