BJP MP Om Birla re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker
New Delhi, June 26 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) Om Birla, BJP MP from Kota-Bundi, was on Wednesday elected by voice vote as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time. With this win, Birla became the first BJP leader to serve the coveted position for the second consecutive time. Protem Speaker of the House Bhartruhari Mahtab announced the election of Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker. PM Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition in Lower House Rahul Gandhi took him to the chair and congratulated him after Birla assumed the post. Before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah, along with other NDA leaders, proposed to elect Om Birla for the post. Meanwhile, on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Arvind Sawant proposed K. Suresh’s name for the Speaker’s post. The majority was, however, in the NDA’s favour, with 297 MPs voting for Om Birla, while the Opposition got 232. Earlier, on Tuesday, Birla was picked as the NDA’s candidate for the Speaker’s post. Union Minister Rajnath Singh and some senior leaders also tried to reach out to the leaders of opposition parties. Rahul Gandhi had said that the Opposition would support the NDA candidate, but at the last moment, it announced Congress MP K. Suresh as its candidate. Notably, Om Birla made several significant decisions as Speaker during Modi 2.0’s tenure. —
