Explained: What is Rajya Sabha's Rule 267, and why opposition wants NEET debate under it

New Delhi, July 22: The Opposition on Wednesday, July 22, submitted a notice under Rule 267 in the Rajya Sabha, seeking suspension of the House's listed business to facilitate an immediate discussion on the alleged police action against student protesters, the detention of Opposition leaders, and the NEET controversy.

Raising the issue in the House, Leader of the Opposition and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, "We want a discussion on NEET under Rule 267. The education minister (Dharmendra Pradhan) should resign."

Responding to the demand, Deputy Chairman Harivansh said that Rule 267 had been invoked only on the "rarest of rare" occasions.

The Opposition is seeking an immediate discussion on the alleged use of excessive force by Delhi Police against student protesters during their march to Parliament on July 20, and the removal of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and other Opposition leaders from outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence, where they were protesting the police action against students.

It has also flagged the silence of PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the issue, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's refusal to resign over the alleged NEET (UG) paper leak in May, which remains the protesters' primary demand, and what it described as the "growing frustration" and "sense of hopelessness" among young people over the country's education and examination system.

What is Rule 267 of the Rajya Sabha

Rule 267 of the Rajya Sabha Rules of Procedure allows for the suspension of specific rules governing the House's listed business.

However, in December last year, Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairperson CP Radhakrishnan had clarified that discussions under Rule 267 can only be held on matters already included in the day's listed business. "Any notice concerning an issue outside the listed business is invalid," he had said, noting that members had been submitting Rule 267 notices "almost daily" to seek discussions on issues of their choosing by suspending the scheduled business. He added that such use was not the purpose of the rule.

Radhakrishnan had also stressed that Rule 267 in the Rajya Sabha is not equivalent to an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha, which is provided for under Article 75(3) of the Constitution.

He had noted that the present form of Rule 267 was adopted by the House in 2000 following the recommendations of a committee, which had observed that the provision was increasingly being invoked to seek discussions on matters neither listed in the day's business nor formally admitted. The committee had accordingly recommended that the rule's application be confined strictly to subjects connected with the listed business.