Recently, BJP MP Om Birla was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the newly elected Lok Sabha. His nomination by the current dispensation was in sharp contrast to what was being speculated in media reports. As such, there were speculations after the BJP’s victory as to who will be appointed to the prestigious post. Names of Santosh Gangwar, Prahlad Patel and Narendra Singh Tomar were speculated by the media as the next speaker. However, Maneka Gandhi was considered the front-runner for the post of Speaker. Maneka has won her MP seat from Sultanpur constituency in Uttar Pradesh. During the campaign, she had created quite a controversy through her statements. Maneka Gandhi, who was union minister in the first term of Modi government, was kept out of the Modi cabinet this time around and as such it was speculated that she might be chosen as the Lok Sabha speaker. However, it was Om Birla, MP from Kota, Rajasthan, who was nominated for the post.
Barely a week into his election as the Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla has shown that the BJP leadership did not err by nominating him as the Lok Sabha Speaker. Ever since he has assumed the office of Lok Sabha speaker, he has made certain significant changes in the functioning of the Lower House of Parliament and if this is any indication of how his tenure is going to be, it seems that Lok Sabha would no longer witness repeated interruptions by MPs and unnecessary adjournments.
As such, Birla has been trying to ensure that the Lok Sabha doesn’t merely go through the motions, but actually holds fruitful discussions and substantially performs the functions which it is supposed to perform. He has already started sitting through longer hours of proceedings and often delays lunch so that first-time MPs can raise matters of importance. He has also shown dexterity when it comes to handling disruptions and has shown no signs of succumbing to pressure due to interruptions in the proceedings of the House.
Another remarkable feature of his functioning which sets him apart from his predecessors is the use of chaste Hindi by Birla. All the Lok Sabha Speakers till date have preferred to communicate in the English language. However, Birla has not even used the words “Aye” and “No” while addressing the MPs for the voice vote. He uses the phrases “Haan ke paksh mein (those in favour of yes)” and “Naa ke paksh mein (those in favour of No)”.
On Wednesday, Birla extended the Zero Hour, during which 60 minutes are given to MPs to raise issues of importance, and pushed back the lunch to 2:30 PM. He delayed lunch so that the first-time MPs could get a chance to speak on issues of importance. All the while, he sat through the proceedings himself. This time around even the Opposition MPs could not hold themselves back from praising the generous Lok Sabha Speaker. TMC MP Saugata Ray said, “You (Om Birla) have forgotten your hunger pangs to give younger members a chance to speak. You are an example on how business should be conducted.”
In another laudable initiative, the Lok Sabha Speaker had met the floor leaders of different parties, a day after being unanimously elected as the Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament. Om Birla had then made it clear that he wanted to give a chance to more people to raise questions during the question hour. Therefore, he had advised that the questions be kept short and concise and the answers, to-the-point.
In another welcome change brought about by Birla, he made it clear that the Parliament is no place for sloganeering, shortly after being elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker. He said, “I don’t think Parliament is the place for sloganeering, for showing placards, or for coming to the well. There is a road for that where they can go and demonstrate. Whatever people want to say here, whatever allegations they have, however they want to attack the government they can, but they can’t come to the gallery and do all this.”
He has already shown that he is not going to take the proceedings of the House lightly. On his first day in office, he cautioned a BJP MP that he will be compelled to take the latter’s name, which would have been a major embarrassment to the MP, because that MP was trying to disturb the House. Later on, when the Congress floor leader Adhir Chowdhury, turned around to talk to his party colleague, Tharoor, Om Birla asked him not to do so.
Lok Sabha is central to the Indian democratic set up. For years, its proceedings have been unfortunately marred by interruptions and adjournments. However, things are going to change substantially during the tenure of Om Birla as the Lok Sabha Speaker. As such the Modi-Shah duo stands vindicated for choosing the right person for the right job.
