New Delhi, June 26 :
Debuting as the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla for being elected as the Speaker for the second time and hoped that under his supervision the voice of the Opposition will not be “silenced” during House proceedings.
He said, “Speaker Sir, this House represents the voice of India’s people and you, Speaker Sir, are the final arbiter of that voice. Of course, the government has political power, but the Opposition also represents the voice of India’s people and this time, the Opposition represents significantly more voice of the Indian people than it did last time”.
Assuring the Speaker that the Opposition would like to assist him in doing his work, Gandhi said, “We would like the House to function often and well. Speaker Sir, it is very important that co-operation happens on the basis of trust”.
He said that it was very important that the voice of the Opposition is not suppressed and it is allowed represent people’s voice in the House. “I am confident that you will allow us to represent our voice, allow us to speak, allow us to represent the voice
Hope Opposition’s
of the people of India”.
He said, “Speaker Sir, the question is not how efficiently the House is run, the question is how much of India’s voice is being allowed to be heard in this House. Speaker Sir, so the idea that you can run the House efficiently by silencing the voice of the Opposition is a non-democratic idea and this election has shown that the people of India expect the Opposition to defend the Constitution, the Samvidhan of this country, and we are confident that by allowing the Opposition to speak, by allowing us to represent the people of India, you will do your duty of defending the Constitution of India”.
NDA nominee Om Birla was elected as the 18th Lok Sabha Speaker, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi moved the motion for his election. He became Speaker for the second successive five-year term after winning the contest against INDIA bloc’s K Suresh through voice vote.
Lok Sabha’s Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday said that together Congress will raise the voice of every Indian in Parliament, protect our Constitution, and hold the NDA government accountable for their actions.
“I thank Congress President @kharge ji, and all the Congress leaders and Babbar Sher karyakartas from across the country for their overwhelming support and warm wishes. Together, we will raise the voice of every Indian in Parliament, protect our Constitution, and hold the NDA government accountable for their actions,” the Congress leader said in a post on X. Notably, Lok Sabha did not have a Leader of the Opposition in the last 10 years because no political party, other than the ruling party, was able to secure the minimum Lok Sabha seats required to nominate a Leader of the Opposition.
Rahul Gandhi won from both Raebareli and Wayanad Lok Sabha constituencies in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. While Rahul Gandhi won with a margin of 364422 votes from Wayanad defeating Communist Party of India’s Annie Raja, in Raebareli, he won with a margin of 390030 votes from Raebareli defeating Bharatiya Janata Party’s Dinesh Pratap Singh.
However, after Rahul Gandhi announced that he would resign as an MP from Wayanad and keep the Raebareli constituency, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced Priyanka Gandhi’s candidature from Wayanad last week.
If Priyanka Gandhi wins from Wayanad, three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family will be in Parliament – Sonia Gandhi in Rajya Sabha and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in the Lok Sabha.
The leader of the largest opposition party having not less than one-tenth seats of the total strength of the Lok Sabha is recognised as the leader of the Opposition.
He will be a member of crucial committees such as Public Accounts (Chairman), Public Undertakings, Estimates and several Joint Parliamentary Committees.
He is entitled to be a member of various selection committees responsible for appointing heads of statutory bodies like the Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Information Commission, the CBI, the NHRC, and the Lokpal.
National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and MP from Kota, Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote.
The house echoed with ‘Ayes’ and ‘Noes’ and the pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab declared Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house.
The opposition which had filed K Suresh as the Speaker candidate of the INDIA bloc did not press for a division vote.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi also extended wishes to Birla and accompanied him to the chair along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and PM Modi.
The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, was able to demonstrate its clear majority to ensure that Om Birla returns to the chair he held in the 17th Lok Sabha. The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha began on June 24 and will conclude on July 3.
The 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3. On June 27, President Murmu is scheduled to address a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament.
