Meanwhile, records state, during the same period, East Delhi MP Sandeep Dikshit has spoken 31 times. Jyotiraditya Scindia spoke 15 times — on budgets, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, wildlife, etc — through combined discussions, Calling Attention, Special Mention, etc. There were 460 starred and unstarred questions against his name. Milind Murli Deora spoke on 11 occasions and there were 348 starred and unstarred questions against his name during the same period.

“He (Rahul Gandhi) is very amiable and accessible. Whenever we meet in Parliament, we talk about a host of things. He is very perceptive also. As for his participation in debates, it should not be a yardstick for judging an MP. Soniaji also does not speak much in the House, but can anybody doubt her understanding of issues and her political skill?” said a Congress MP.

For the record, Sonia Gandhi has also spoken only thrice in the current Lok Sabha. She spoke to felicitate Somnath Chatterjee and Charanjit Singh Atwal on their elections as Speaker and Deputy Speaker, respectively, and once on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill. During the last Lok Sabha though, there were 42 hits against her name in parliamentary records of debates on the Lok Sabha website.