Much against expectation of a tough fight, ruling NDA’s candidate Om Birla was elected Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha on Wednesday without much hitch.

The Opposition had proposed the name of Mr K Suresh of the Congress Party, but Mr Birla was declared elected by a voice vote.

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Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab took up the Speaker’s election, within minutes of the Lok Sabha assembly. There were 10 proposals for the election of Mr Birla as the Speaker, with the first one made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. There were six proposals for Mr Suresh from the Opposition members.

The prime minister’s proposal, seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, was the first to be put to vote and after shouts of “Ayes” by the Treasury Benches and “Noes” from the Opposition, Mr Mahtab declared Mr Birla elected.

The House was packed with members as both sides had issued whips to their members to be present for the possible “fight.” However, Mr Mahtab’s declaration “the motion is adopted,” ended all suspense. The Pro-tem Speaker said since Mr Modi’s motion was adopted, all motions made after him were infructuous.

Mr Mahtab, thereafter, invited Mr Birla to take the chair. The prime minister walked up to Mr Birla’s seat, joined by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who accompanied him to the Speaker’s podium, amid heavy clapping and thumping of desks from Treasury and Opposition benches.

“This is your seat, please take it,” Mr Mahtab said, walking down to his seat in the Chamber.

This will be Mr Birla’s second term as Speaker of the Lok Sabha, after being Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha. He has been elected to the House for the third consecutive time from Kota, Rajasthan on BJP ticket. Mr Suresh, his rival, has been an eight-time member of the Lok Sabha and currently represents the Mavelikkara seat of Kerala.

Welcoming Mr Birla as the Speaker, the prime minister said he had set high standards in his previous term and would be able to guide the House with his experience. His soft-spoken behaviour and smile had kept the House in good spirits.

Mr Modi said after Mr Balram Jakhar, Mr Birla would be the second Speaker to occupy the chair a second time. The others were either defeated or did not contest an election.

Mr Modi said the 17th Lok Sabha was the golden period of Indian parliamentary history; there were historic decisions under Mr Birla’s chairmanship and reforms made through Parliament, and Mr Birla’s role will be recorded in history for that.

The prime minister recalled several historic Bills like the Nari Shakti Adhiniyam and J&K Reorganisation Bills passed during Mr Birla’s Speakership of the 17th Lok Sabha. Mr Birla had started the practice of holding briefings for the MPs. The P20 held under his leadership after the G20 conference saw the largest attendance of foreign Speakers.

The House achieved 97 per cent productivity under Mr Birla and during the Corona pandemic, Mr Birla was not only inquiring about the health of the MPs but also conducted the House proceedings with an incredible 170 per cent productivity. Mr Birla had to make some decisions with pain, but he did not fail to make them to maintain the decorum of the House.

Mr Rahul Gandhi congratulated Mr Birla on behalf of the entire Opposition and said the House represents the voice of the people and he was the final arbiter. He said the government has political power, but the Opposition also represents the voice of the people and this time the Opposition represents significantly more people.

Mr Gandhi hoped the voice of the Opposition would be allowed to be heard. “The question is not how efficiently the House is run; the question is how much of India’s voice is allowed to be heard. The idea that you can run the House efficiently by silencing the voice of the Opposition is a non-democratic idea. This election has shown that the people expect the Opposition to defend the Constitution of the country,” he said.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav hoped all parties would be given equal treatment in the 18th Lok Sabha, and that there should be no more actions like expulsion of MPs. Mr Yadav said the Speaker should control the treasury benches as much as the Opposition.

Mr Sudip Bandyopadhyay (Trinamul Congress), a member of the House from the 12th Lok Sabha, said the House belongs to the Opposition, and the ruling party should have this attitude. The suspension of 150 MPs in one day is not desirable. He hoped the Bills would be duly discussed before being passed. The Opposition is in a better strength now and should not be neglected, he said.

Responding to members’ greetings, Mr Birla said there were 281 new members of the Lok Sabha and hoped they would learn from the experience of senior members. He said the nation is above all and agreement and disagreement are strengths of democracy. People have expectations, he said, and let the House run without disruption and maintain norms.