Lok Sabha tables motion to remove speaker Om Birla, 10-hour debate scheduled

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): A heated debate erupted in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday when the Congress party introduced a no-confidence motion to remove Speaker Om Birla from his post. The motion was followed by heated arguments over procedure and rules, before the House finally allowed a discussion on the motion. A 10-hour debate was scheduled on the issue.

Congress MP Mohammad Javed formally introduced this motion. The motion bears the signatures of 118 opposition MPs. The opposition alleges that the Speaker has adopted a "partisan attitude" during the proceedings of the House. The opposition says that Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha, which increased dissatisfaction. After the motion was introduced, a new controversy arose in the House. The question arose as to who would preside over the proceedings of the House while the motion to remove the Speaker was pending. At that time, the proceedings of the House were being chaired by Jagdambika Pal.

AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi and Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy raised a point of order on this issue. Citing parliamentary rules, Owaisi said that when a motion to remove the Speaker is under discussion, the Speaker or his nominee should not preside over the proceedings. Owaisi also stated that the Deputy Speaker (Deputy Speaker) has not yet been appointed in the Lok Sabha. Therefore, the members currently occupying the Chair have been nominated with the Speaker's approval. Therefore, it would not be appropriate for them to discuss this motion. He suggested that the House should reach a consensus on who will preside over the proceedings before the debate begins.

The BJP also responded to this. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said that according to parliamentary rules, any member sitting in the Chair can conduct proceedings, exercising the same powers as the Speaker. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju also supported BJP MP Nishikant Dubey and said that the rules clearly give this authority to the Chair. Meanwhile, Congress MP KC Venugopal, targeting the government, said that the Deputy Speaker has not been appointed yet, which is a serious issue. He said that before moving the debate forward, the House should reach a consensus on who will conduct the proceedings.

Meanwhile, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad intervened, stating that the member occupying the Chair has full authority to conduct the House's proceedings. After hearing arguments from both sides, Jagdambika Pal, who was presiding over the proceedings, stated that the Speaker's position is not vacant, and therefore the Chair has full authority to conduct the proceedings. He also pointed out that Speaker Om Birla himself has decided not to preside during this debate.

Jagdambika Pal said the Speaker was generous in correcting the initial technical errors in the notice and personally issued the necessary corrections. Congress MP Mohammad Javed formally introduced the motion to remove the Speaker in the House. Ultimately, it was decided that the Lok Sabha would discuss the motion to remove Speaker Om Birla for a total of 10 hours.