President Murmu Appoints Bhartruhari Mahtab As Pro Tem Speaker Of Lok Sabha; Opposition Objects – News18

President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday appointed Member of Parliament and BJP leader Bhartruhari Mahtab as Pro Tem Speaker of Lok Sabha.

Informing about the same, Union minister Kiren Rijiju took to X and wrote, “President is pleased to appoint Shri Bhartruhari Mahtab, Member, Lok Sabha as Speaker Protem under Article 95(1) of the Constitution to perform the duties of Speaker till election of the Speaker.”

In addition to this, the President also appointed Suresh Kodikunnil, Thalikkottai Rajuthevar Baalu, Radha Mohan Singh, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Sudip Bandyopadhyay to assist the Speaker Pro Tem in oath to the newly elected members of the 18th Lok Sabha till the election of the Speaker.

Who Is Bhartruhari Mahtab?

Bhartruhari Mahtab, a seven-time MP from Cuttack and son of Odisha’s former Chief Minister Harekrushna Mahtab, moved to the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls ending his long association with Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal.

The 66-year-old leader, now considered to be BJP’s key leader in Odisha, announced his resignation from BJD in March this year, expressing displeasure over the BJD’s functioning.

Mahtab has received the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award in 2017, and the Sansad Ratna Award 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 for his outstanding role as an MP.

Notably, Mahtab’s selection for the post of Pro Tem Speaker comes after the BJP won the state Assembly elections with a thumping majority.

What Is The Role Of Pro Tem Speaker?

Pro Tem Speaker is the temporary speaker who presides over the first meeting of the lower House of Parliament after the general elections besides presiding over the sitting in which the Speaker and Deputy Speaker are elected if it is a newly constituted House.

As a Pro Tem Speaker, Mahtab will preside over the first sitting of the Lok Sabha and administer the oath to the newly elected MPs. He will also oversee the election of the Lok Sabha speaker.

The election for the Speaker of 18th Lok Sabha is scheduled to be held on June 26. The newly-elected Lok Sabha will meet for its inaugural session from June 24 to July 3.

Opposition Objects

Soon after the big announcement, the Congress party attacked the BJP and accused the party of violating the norms of selection of Lok Sabha Speaker Pro Tem. The grand old party alleged that the BJP surpassed Kodikunnil Suresh, who will be entering his 8th term, and appointed Bhartruhari Mahtab.

Taking to X, Congress leader KC Venugopal wrote, “In yet another attempt at destroying parliamentary norms, Mr. Bhartruhari Mahtab (a 7-term MP) has been appointed the Pro-Tem Speaker, superseding Sh. Kodikunnil Suresh, who will be entering his 8th term.”

“It is an unquestioned norm that the senior most MP presides over the proceedings of the House before the Speaker is duly elected. It is a matter of immense pride for our party that K Suresh, a leader from the marginalised section of society, has achieved this feat of being an 8-term MP,” he added. 

Meanwhile, Manickam Tagore reshared Rijiju’s tweet and wrote, “First mistake as Parliamentary Affairs Minister: 7-term BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab chosen as Protem Speaker of Lok Sabha over senior-most Dalit MP Kodikkunnil Suresh of Congress. What are the minister’s intentions.”