'Last speech' by 'back-bencher' Gowda?

Pained at the attack against him by the opposition, former prime minister and Janata Dal-Secular chief H D Deve Gowda on Monday made an emotional appeal to the Lok Sabha to listen to him patiently saying this may be his 'last speech.'

He also sought permission from Speaker Somnath Chatterjee to speak from a rear row referring to a newspaper article calling him a 'back-bencher.'

Gowda recalled incidents in the state in the past few months, including the attack allegedly by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Bajrang Dal activists on the Bangalore residence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's daughter, prompting opposition BJP to counter the charges.

"Please allow me to speak. It may be my last speech," Gowda told the House, prompting an intervention from Chatterjee.

"No, no I will keep you detained here," he told Gowda.

The commotion in the House also prompted Parliamentary Affairs Minister P R Dasmunsi to jump to Gowda's defence.

"Please find from the records what Opposition members have said about this gentleman. He has the right to defend," Dasmunsi said.

In his nearly hour-long speech, Gowda accused a 'former Karnataka chief minister' of trying to destabilise his party and asked Home Minister Shivraj Patil to look at intelligence reports on the visits of the said leader to Karnataka.

Gowda said he had written letters to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Patil 'begging' them to dissolve the state assembly.