In a first in the history of Independent India, Om Birla and K Suresh filed their nominations as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and INDIA bloc candidates, respectively, for the Lok Sabha Speaker election on Wednesday, June 26. In past elections, the Lok Sabha Speaker was chosen with concensus between the ruling party and the Opposition. The tradition was broken this year as INDIA bloc demanded the deputy Speaker post in exchange for extending support to the NDA candidate.
According to the reports, over 10 sets of nominations were filed in support of Om Birla’s candidature, including from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and JP Nadda, and BJP allies like TDP, JD(U), JD(S) and LJP (R). Three sets of nominations were filed in support of Dalit leader and Congress candidate K Suresh.
WHO IS NDA CANDIDATE OM BIRLA?
Om Birla was elected to the 16th Lok Sabha after he won from Kota in Rajasthan. Om Birla was also a member of the Standing Committee on Energy in Parliament and member of Committee on Petitions and Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
He was elected again in the 17th Lok Sabha after winning the 2019 general elections from Kota and served as Speaker of the lower House of Parliament.
He has returned to the Lok Sabha for the third time from Kota in Rajasthan. If Om Birla wins, he would be the first person to get the post for the second term in 25 years.
Also Read | Om Birla vs K Suresh, who has the numbers to become Lok Sabha Speaker? Read here
Om Birla has been active in politics since he was a student. He served as state unit president of the Bhartiya Yuva Morcha in 1991 and as vice-president at the national level. How is Lok Sabha Speaker elected? Read here
Birla’s name was proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was supported by all major opposition parties, including Congress, TMC, DMK, and BJD. The YSRCP and TDP also supported Birla’s candidature.
WHO IS K SURESH, THE OPPOSITION CANDIDATE?
Kodikunnil Suresh is the Opposition candidate from the INDIA bloc. He has been eight-time MP from Kerala – the longest serving Lok Sabha MP. K Suresh was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1989 and subsequently won the 1991, 1996, and 1999 general elections from the Adoor constituency, serving four consecutive terms.
Suresh, who won his eighth Lok Sabha election from Mavelikkara (Kerala) in the 2024 general elections, has represented the seat four times in the past.
The Kerala MP has served as the working-president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). He was also the chief whip of the Congress Parliamentary Party in the 17th Lok Sabha.
After his nomination from the INDIA bloc, K Suresh said it is not about winning or losing, but about a convention that Speaker will be of ruling party and deputy Speaker will be of Opposition.
(With agency inputs)
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Published: 25 Jun 2024, 02:27 PM IST