BJP's Kota MP Om Birla has been re-elected as the Speaker of Lok Sabha after winning a rare election against the opposition candidate and Kerala Congress MP K Suresh. He won by voice vote.
Birla will now serve his second term as Speaker. Congress's Balram Jakhar is the only MP who completed two full terms as the Lok Sabha Speaker.
After 1952, 1967 and 1976, this was the fourth contest for the Speaker’s post in the history of Lok Sabha.
Birla, 61, is a three-term MP from Rajasthan's Kota.
During Birla's last tenure, the Lok Sabha saw an improvement in its efficiency. Parliament withstood the waves of Covid-19, passed landmark legislation such as the women’s reservation bill and scrapped Article 370.
Twice, the lower house sat beyond midnight to complete business with Birla in the chair.
Who is Om Birla?
A prominent Vaishya face of BJP, Om Birla began his political journey as a student leader and served three consecutive terms in the Rajasthan assembly from 2003 to 2013.
He has been a prominent figure in BJP, particularly known for his work in cooperative societies in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Birla won his first Lok Sabha election in 2014 and was re-elected in 2019. Over the years, he has held significant roles, including in the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha.
Om Birla had registered a 86 per cent average attendance in the House, has asked 671 questions, participated in 163 debates and introduced six private member's bills during the 16th Lok Sabha.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Birla defeated Congress's Prahlad Gunjal by nearly 42,000 votes.
Rare showdown
The opposition's last-minute decision to go for a rare contest for the Speaker's post came after senior BJP leaders did not agree to its precondition that the INDIA bloc must be offered the post of deputy speaker in lieu of supporting Birla, who is the clear favourite in case of an election.
Though the Speaker is independent of political and executive control, realpolitik considerations are often the driving force behind the choice for the Chair which is the nerve centre of Parliament's functioning.
(With inputs from agencies)
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