Deputy Speaker: Why this vacant post has led to first major NDA vs INDIA showdown in Lok Sabha

The election of the Deputy Speaker is conducted after the Speaker has been named

Congress leader KC Venugopal and DMK's TR Baalu on Tuesday walked out of defence minister Rajnath Singh's office after refusing to endorse NDA candidate Om Birla for the Lok Sabha Speaker's position. They were hopeful that the ruling alliance would offer the Deputy Speaker's post to the opposition but the BJP refused to give a commitment on this, according to Venugopal.

The INDIA bloc, thereafter, fielded Congress leader K Suresh as its candidate for the Speaker's position against Om Birla. Both Birla and Suresh filed their nominations as NDA and INDIA bloc candidates on Tuesday and the voting will take place tomorrow.

An assertive opposition said that it would either settle for the Deputy Speaker's post or field its candidate to challenge Birla. The INDIA bloc won 234 seats in the recent Lok Sabha elections, compared to NDA's 293.

Why the spotlight has shifted towards Deputy Speaker?

Ahead of crucial Lok Sabha Speaker election on Wednesday, the attention has unexpectedly shifted towards the Deputy Speaker's post -- a position lying vacant for the last five years.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said the Opposition will support the government on the Lok Sabha Speaker's choice if the convention is followed and the Deputy Speaker's post is given to the opposition bloc.

"The entire opposition has said that they will support the government on the Speaker's post, but the convention is that the post of Deputy Speaker is given to the opposition," he said.

The position of Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha has been vacant since 2019, when the Modi government came to power for a second time. In 2014, BJP had given the post to its then ally AIADMK with M Thambidurai serving as the latest Deputy Speaker of the lower house.

In the last several instances, it was observed that the government supported a candidate from the opposition for the Deputy Speaker's post. Charanjit Singh Atwal of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), for instance, was the Deputy Speaker of the 14th Lok Sabha of India from 2004 to 2009 when the UPA was in power. In a similar manner, Kariya Munda of BJP was the Deputy Speaker from 2009 to 2014.

However, the tradition to offer Deputy Speaker's post is not followed university, with several states - including those ruled by Congress and allies - giving the post to their own party leaders.

The case of absent Deputy Speaker

The absence of a Deputy Lok Sabha speaker during the 17th Lok Sabha has been a point of concern, with the opposition calling it unconstitutional.

However, a Union minister told the Indian Express last year that there was no “immediate requirement” for a Deputy Speaker as “Bills are being passed and discussions are being held” in accordance with the procedures of the House.

The minister also added that in the absence of Birla, there is a panel of nine members selected from different parties who can act as chairpersons to assist the Speaker to run the House.

Moreover, as per reports, the single largest opposition party must have a strength of 56 in order to have a member as the Deputy Speaker -- which the Congress lacked in the previous Lok Sabha. This time, the Congress has the numbers as it secured 99 seats in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.

K Suresh on Tuesday said it is not about winning or losing, but about a convention that Speaker will be of ruling party and Deputy Speaker from the opposition.

"Last two Lok Sabhas, they denied us Deputy Speaker's post because they said you are not recognised as the opposition. Now we are recognised as the opposition, (and) Deputy Speaker post is our right. But they are not ready to give us," he told reporters.

Why the Deputy Speaker's post is important

The Deputy Speaker is elected from among the members of the Lok Sabha and holds an independent position. They are not the actual subordinate of the speaker since both are elected from among the members of the House.

The election of the Deputy Speaker is conducted after the Speaker has been named.

In the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker is required to perform the duties of the office of the Speaker and preside over the sitting of the House and also the joint sitting of the Houses of Parliament and exercises the powers of the Speaker.

Similar to the Speaker, his/her Deputy also gets to cast the deciding vote if there is a tie during voting within Parliament or between both houses.

(With agency inputs)