Amid the opposition's demand for the Deputy speaker's post, NDA's candidate for Lok Sabha post Om Birla filed his nomination on Tuesday.
He was followed by INDIA Bloc candidate K Suresh who filed nomination after Centre reportedly denied to give the Deputy speaker's post to the opposition, breaking the decades-old convention.
Soon after Om Birla filed his nomination for the post of Speaker, TMC MP Mahua Moitra took a jibe at him by tweeting "Na Baithiye," the term he used to silence opposition members in Parliament.
Taking to X, Mahua wrote, "Om Birla Ji is NDA speaker candidate. Hope he realises that with 234 of us this time his 'Naw Baithiye' won’t be as easy to implement."
During his previous term as Lok Sabha Speaker, Birla would often tell opposition MPs to sit down by saying "Na Baithiye" (you won't be heard, sit down) when he chaired the sittings.
The election for the Lok Sabha speaker's post is scheduled to be held on June 26. Interestingly, this year, there is likely to be an unprecedented face-off in Parliament as MPs are expected to vote to elect the Lok Sabha speaker.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused PM Modi of breaking the tradition by not offering the Deputy speaker post to the Oppostion.
Takin to X, Congress leader wrote, "Barely 24 hours after his hypocrisy-laden pravachan on consensus and cooperation the non-biological PM has made a contest for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker inevitable. Convention has been that the Speaker is elected unanimously and the Deputy Speaker's post goes to the Opposition. The non-biological PM has broken this tradition. It is actually no surprise. He has still not woken up to the reality of the 2024 poll verdict which was a PPM defeat for him--personal, political and moral."
Notably, in December last year, Mahua was expelled from the Lok Sabha following an Ethics Committee report that recommended her removal from Parliament. The Ethics Committee had investigated allegations made by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, claiming that Mahua Moitra accepted a bribe from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to ask questions in the Lok Sabha.
