Lok Sabha Speaker Manohar Joshi on Monday effectively disciplined National Democratic Alliance members who tried to disrupt Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's speech as she moved the no-confidence motion against the government.

As soon as Gandhi said "this House expresses its want of confidence against the Council of Ministers", some NDA leader led Prabhunath Singh (Samata Party) stood up and raised a point of order.

Agitated Congress and opposition members tried to shout Singh down and a visibly irritated speaker asked what the point of order was and under which rule had he sought to raise it.

Singh said Rule 352 (11) forbade members from speaking in the House by reading from any paper. He said the Congress chief should speak extempore.

As pandemonium prevailed in the House, the speaker told Singh that the rule was not applicable and that he had permitted the Congress chief to speak by consulting some papers.

Joshi reminded the House that the debate should be held with decency and decorum because it was being broadcast by Doordarshan and All India Radio.

Following the mild rebuke, Singh and his colleagues promptly sat down.

Congress member Priyaranjan Dasmunshi and Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Somnath Chatterjee applauded the speaker's ruling in the matter.