A major confrontation erupted in Lok Sabha on Monday after Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi attempted to quote from the memoir of former Army Chief MM Naravane during his speech on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, triggering sharp objections from the ruling party.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah accused Gandhi of "misleading" the House, objecting on the grounds that the book has not been published.

Gandhi rose to respond to allegations by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya questioning Congress's patriotism and nationalism. He announced his intention to read from General Naravane's memoir, stating it would clarify "who is patriotic, who is not."

"A young colleague over there made an allegation against the Congress Party. I was not going to raise this issue, but because he has raised the issue about our patriotism, I'd like to start by reading something from the memoir of Army Chief Naravane," Gandhi said.

Rajnath Singh immediately questioned whether the book had been published. Gandhi insisted the document was authenticated and he was entitled to quote from it.

"What does it contain which is scaring them so much? If they are not scared, I should be allowed to read on," Gandhi challenged.

Government sources countered that Gandhi was reading "concocted things" on China, alleging the Opposition was ignoring what they described as former Prime Minister Nehru's failures on China.

Speaker Om Birla ruled that no unpublished book or unrelated material could be quoted during proceedings. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju warned of potential action against members who defy the Speaker's ruling.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav supported Gandhi, urging the Speaker to allow the Congress leader to continue speaking.