Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term Congress MP from Kerala, has been nominated by the opposition INDIA bloc as their candidate for the election of the Lok Sabha Speaker.
This is the first time in independent India’s history that an election for the Speaker’s post will be held, as the presiding officer has traditionally been chosen by consensus.
Suresh, who is the senior-most member of the Lok Sabha, was initially expected to be appointed as the pro-tem Speaker to administer the oath to newly elected members.
However, the government instead chose Bhartruhari Mahtab, a seven-term BJP MP, for the post. The opposition has criticized this decision as a violation of convention and a snub to Suresh, who is a senior Dalit leader from Kerala.
With negotiations between the government and opposition failing to reach a consensus on the Speaker and Deputy Speaker posts, the INDIA bloc has now decided to field Suresh as their candidate for Speaker.
This marks a significant departure from the usual practice of electing the Speaker unopposed.
Rahul Gandhi’s remarks
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said the opposition will support the government on the Lok Sabha Speaker’s choice if they give the deputy speaker’s post to the opposition bloc.
He also said that Defence Minister and senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh was yet to get back to them on the opposition’s demand for the deputy speaker’s post.
NDA fields Om Birla once again
Kota MP Om Birla on Tuesday filed nomination for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker as an NDA consensus candidate, a position he held in the previous House.
JD(U) leader and Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh told reporters here that Birla’s name was decided unanimously by all NDA parties and that senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh also reached out to the opposition for their support.
Congress leader K C Venugopal and DMK’s T R Baalu walked out of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s office, refusing to endorse NDA candidate Birla without being offered the Deputy Speaker’s position.
Venugopal said the BJP refused to give a commitment on offering the Deputy Speaker’s post to the opposition.
Union ministers Amit Shah and J P Nadda besides Singh tried to persuade opposition leaders to endorse the NDA nominee but in vain.
Hitting out at the opposition, Lalan Singh said they wanted a decision on the post of deputy speaker immediately despite Rajnath Singh requesting that everyone should sit together and discuss the issue when the time comes for the selection.
His Cabinet colleague Piyush Goyal said it would have been better to have an consensus candidate and criticised the opposition for putting forth conditions.
Democracy cannot be run on conditions, he asserted.
Nominations filed
Sources said over 10 sets of nominations were filed in support of Birla’s candidature, including from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Shah, Singh and Nadda, and BJP allies like TDP, JD(U), JD(S) and LJP (R).
Three sets of nominations were filed in support of Suresh, a Dalit leader and eight-term MP.
(With excerpts from PTI)
