NDA’s Om Birla vs INDIA’s K Suresh for Lok Sabha Speaker, voting on June 26

Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSR Congress Party has announced support for the NDA nominee for the post. The YSRCP has 11 seats in the Lok Sabha and its support for the NDA nominee effectively takes its tally to 304 seats against 233 of the INDIA bloc. In the 542-member House, the winning candidate will need 271 votes in its favour to gain a simple majority.

The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party have issued whips asking their Lok Sabha MPs to be present in Parliament at the time of voting for the Lok Sabha Speaker election. The NDA has fielded Om Birla while the Congress has fielded Kodikunnil Suresh for the post. The voting is scheduled to be held at 11 AM on Wednesday.

Ahead of the unprecedented clash between NDA nominee Om Birla and Congress‘ Kodikunnil Suresh for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee said that the decision to field the latter as the joint nominee of the Opposition was unilaterally taken by the Congress and that his party was not consulted on the matter. Suresh, an eight-time MP from Kerala, filed his nominatiuon for Lok Sabha Speaker earlier this morning.

The government has said that the Opposition is trying to dictate terms while offering support to the NDA’s nominee for Lok Sabha Speaker. Senior ministers said the government would reach out to the Opposition on the issue of Deputy Speaker but rejected its pre-condition that it would support the NDA’s Speaker candidate only if the Deputy Speaker post is given to the Opposition. Setting such conditions, senior government ministers said, was unacceptable.

The remarks came after the INDIA bloc of Opposition parties fielded Kerala MP Kodikunnil Suresh for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker against NDA nominee Om Birla.

Union minister and BJP leader Pralhad Joshi said that the Opposition offered support to the government’s nominee for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post with a pre-condition that wasn’t accepted. “Today, a proposal had to be moved for the post of Speaker and prior to that Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah held a discussion with top opposition leaders. However, unfortunately, they (Opposition) offered to support with a pre-condition. This can not happen in Parliamentary democracy. The Defence minister told the Opposition that we will hold discussions with everyone over the Deputy Speaker’s post when the issue comes up.

“Speaker and Deputy Speaker are not of the government or opposition. Speaker is the custodian of the House and Deputy Speaker is the deputy custodian. They are going to contest (Lok Sabha Speaker’s election), which is against the convention. I still urge the Opposition leaders to rethink,” Joshi told reporters.

Shiromani Akali Dal MP and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal criticised the INDIA bloc of Opposition parties for failing to honour the convention of the Lok Sabha Speaker being elected unanimously and forcing a contest by fielding its own nominee. “As far as I know, the Speaker is always elected unanimously because the Speaker does not belong to any party, he belongs to the entire House. This is the first time that voting will take place for the post of Speaker. And this is not a good start. Especially when the ruling party has the numbers. Only the INDIA bloc can tell why the process is being broken,” she said.

Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said that the Opposition is ready to support the NDA’s choice for Lok Sabha Speaker if the government agrees to appoint its nominee as the Deputy Speaker of the House. “We are still waiting, if they are ready to give the Deputy Speaker post, we are ready to elect the NDA’s candidate unanimously. Yesterday PM Modi talked about consensus for the smooth functioning of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. We are ready to support the Speaker suggested by the government’s side provided they also honour the Opposition,” Venugopal said.

Bharatiya Janata Party MP Om Birla emerged as the ruling NDA’s top choice as Lok Sabha Speaker even as the Opposition INDIA bloc forced a contest for the post by fielding Kerala Congress leader and eight-time MP K Suresh as its nominee. Birla and Suresh filed their nominations at the Lok Sabha secretariat, setting the stage for a contest for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post for the first time in independent India.

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Congress MP and INDIA bloc’s nominee for Lok Sabha Speaker today said that he filed his nomination after waiting for the NDA’s response to its demand for the Deputy Speaker’s post. “I have filed my nomination. It is the party’s decision, not mine. There is a convention in Lok Sabha where the Speaker will be from the ruling party and the Deputy Speaker from the opposition… Deputy Speaker is our right. But they are not ready to give it to us. Till 11:50 am, we were waiting for a response from the government, but they did not give any response. That is why we filed the nomination,” Suresh told the media.

Despite the Opposition forcing a contest for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, the outcome is evident even before the voting takes place. The NDA bloc has 293 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha while the INDIA bloc has 234. The Opposition would fall short of the required number even if the remaining 16 MPs chose to vote for its nominee. The fight, however, is symbolic and a bid to show the government in poor light for failing to draw a consensus on the Speaker’s election in the House.

The Congress party has defended the Oppoisition’s decision to field eight-time MP K Suresh as its nominee for the post of Speaker, claiming that it has forced a contest to convey to the nation that the Opposition is aware and vigilant against attempts to lower the dignity of the House. Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said, “The Prime Minister says one thing and does something else. Yesterday, he talked about consensus and today he is not ready to give even the post of Deputy Speaker. So, if the same ego remains as before, then our struggle to save democracy and to save the dignity of the House will continue and that is why we have put K Suresh’s (candidature) from our side. It is a fight to tell the country that the opposition is aware, the opposition is vigilant…”

BJP leader and Union minister Piyush Goyal came down heavily on the Congress party after the latter fielded Kerala MP K Suresh against NDA’s nominee Om Birla for the Speaker’s election. “They said first decide the name for Deputy Speaker then we will support the Speaker candidate. We condemn such politics,” Goyal said, adding that a good tradition would have been to choose the Speaker unanimously. “The Speaker does not belong to any party or opposition; he belongs to the entire House.”

The BJP minister further said that conditions that only a particular person or from a particular party should be the Deputy Speaker, do not fit into any tradition of the Lok Sabha. The Congress had demanded that Suresh be appointed Deputy Speaker, failing which it would field him as its Speaker candidate.

BJP leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla filed his nomination as the NDA nominee in a bid to return to the post he served from 2019 to 2024. Birla was chosen as the NDA’s nominee a day ahead of the scheduled election on June 26. Meanwhile, the Opposition has fielded Congress leader K Suresh for the post. The development sets stage for a contest for the Speaker’s post for the first time since India‘s independence.

The election for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker will take place at 11 AM tomorrow. The process has been necessitated after the Opposition fielded Congress leader K Suresh, an eight-time MP, for the post.

For the first time in the history of the Lok Sabha, the Speaker will be elected through a contest and with consensus as has been the norm. The Opposition has forced a contest for the position after the Centre refused to accept its caveat for supporting the NDA nominee in exchange for the Deputy Speaker’s post. As per convention, the post of the Speaker is occupied by a ruling alliance leader while the Deputy Speaker’s position goes to the Opposition. In 2014, the BJP kept the Deputy Speaker’s post for its ally the AIADMK. In 2019, however, the position remained vacant.

Congress leader from Kerala and eight-time Lok Sabha MP K Suresh has filed his nomination as Lok Sabha Speaker. The twist came after the Opposition said it was willing to support the NDA nominee if it got the Deputy Speaker’s post. The demand, however, was rejected by the NDA.

The election for the Lok Sabha Speaker is set to see a contest for the first time since independence amid reports that the INDIA bloc has decided to field eight-time MP K Suresh as its nominee for the Speaker’s post. The NDA, on the other hand, has chosen to field former Speaker Om Birla for the post. The Opposition’s turnaround came after the government’s alleged silence on the demand that K Suresh be appointed Deputy Speaker. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi clarified that the support to the NDA nominee was conditional upon the NDA agreeing to appoint an Opposition leader as Deputy Speaker.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said that the Opposition has agreed to support the NDA”s nominee for the post of Speaker provided that the Deputy Spekaer’s post goes to the Opposition.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi claimed that his party has extended support to the BJP‘s choice for Lok Sabha Speaker but has not received any communication with regard to the demand that an Opposition leader be made Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha. “Rajnath Singh called Mallikarjun Kharge and he asked him to extend support to the Speaker. The entire Opposition said we would support the Speaker but the convention is that the Deputy Speaker post should be given to the Opposition. Rajnath Singh said he would call back Mallikarjun Kharge but he has not done that yet…PM Modi is asking for cooperation from the Opposition but our leader is getting insulted,” Rahul told reports outside Parliament.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday backed the proposal that the Deputy Speaker’s post should go to the Opposition. “Everything will be out soon… The demand of the Opposition was that the Deputy Speaker (of the Lok Sabha) should be of the Opposition… Our party’s opinion is also the same,” he said speaking to the media.

Top leaders of the National Democratic Alliance will accompany Om Birla as he files his nomination for a second term as Lok Sabha Speaker. The Opposition, reports said, has agreed to Birla’s name as Speaker but continues to insist on the Deputy Speaker’s post.

Former Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is likely to file his nomination for the Speaker’s post at around 11.30 AM, media reports said citing sources. The development comes after Birla met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament amid indications that the NDA could bank on continuity for the Speaker’s position as it did for the Cabinet.

Om Birla’s meeting with the Prime Minister comes amid heightened suspense over the NDA’s pick as nominee for the Lok Sabha Speaker election scheduled to be held tomorrow. NDA leaders are tight-lipped on the matter even as some leaders anonymously revealed that there have been discussions between the BJP and NDA partners, though the final decision has not been communicated to them.

Amid suspense over the NDA’s pick as Lok Sabha Speaker, BJP MP Om Birla called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the capital on Tuesday, a day ahead of the scheduled election for the post he just vacated. With continuity being the theme of the Modi 3.0 government, there are indications that the government may choose to continue Birla as the Speaker. Nominations for the SPeaker’s election close at 12 noon today.

The nominee from the NDA for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker will have until 12 noon on Tuesday to file his or her nomination. It is yet to be seen if the INDIA bloc of Opposition parties also fields a candidate for the post. The bloc has been demanding the post of Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker for an Opposition leader and even warned that it would field a candidate and force a contest for the Speaker’s post if its demand isn’t met. The Congress said that its leader K Suresh should have been appointed as the pro-tem Speaker by virtue of his eight terms as an MP. The BJP, on the other hand, has argued that Bhartruhari Mahtab, who was appointed to the post on Monday morning, has been an MP for seven consecutive terms unlike K Suresh who returned to the Lok Sabha for a fourth consecutive term this year.

D Purandeswari, Bhartruhari Mahtab and Radha Mohan Singh are tipped to be the names being considered by the BJP as the NDA’s nominee for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker. The announcement is likely to be made on Tuesday, a day ahead of the voting scheduled to be held on June 26. The BJP is likely to retain the Speaker’s post and may attempt to offer the post of Deputy Speaker to one of its alliance partners.

The election to appoint the new Lok Sabha Speaker will be held on Wednesday and the NDA could announce its nominee on Tuesday. The special session of Parliament that began on June 24 saw MPs take oath in the Lok Sabha. The process will continue on Tuesday, Day 2 of the Session and the SPeaker’s election will be taken up on Day 3. For now, prominent names doing the rounds as NDA’s pick as Speaker include pro-tem Speaker B Mahtab, former Union minister Radha Mohan Singh and BJP‘s AP unit president D Purandeswari. However, given BJP’s penchant for springing a surprise, the possibility of an unexpected name being nominated as Speaker cannot be ruled out.

The NDA is likely to announce its nominee for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post on Tuesday. The name will be proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the House on June 26 when the elections are proposed to be held. The proposal will then have to be backed by all parties. The Opposition’s refusal to agree on the NDA nominee will be followed by the proposal of another name and voting will be held to decide who will be appointed the Lok Sabha Speaker.

The NDA may reveal its choice as nominee for the Lok Sabha SPeaker’s post on Tuesday, party sources said, a day ahead of the scheduled election on June 26. Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab, senior BJP leader Radha Mohan Singh and Andhra Pradesh BJP president D Purandeswari are believed to be the frontrunners for the key post.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has defended the President’s decision to appoint Bhartruhari Mahtab’s appointment as the pro-tem Speaker of Lok Sabha. As per the Centre, the appointment is in line with convention that the Member of Parliament with the longest uninterrupted stint be appointed pro-tem Speaker. In the Lok Sabha elections held recently, Mahtab won his seat for the seventh straight time. In contrast, the Congress said K Suresh should have been chosen as the pro-tem Speaker citing his eighth term as an MP. The BJP, however, argues that Suresh is an MP for only the fourth consecutive term.