Om Birla, K Suresh In Race For Lok Sabha Speaker

In what could be a first in the history of independent India, the position of Lok Sabha speaker will be filled via election. Om Birla is the nominee from National Democratic Alliance, while Congress' K Suresh filed his nomination in the eleventh hour, forcing a vote for the office.

This will be the first time since 1946 that an election will be held for the position of Lok Sabha speaker. Traditionally, the position has been filled with unanimous consensus of the Lok Sabha members.

Voting for Lok Sabha speaker will take place on Wednesday.

Congress had asked for the Deputy Speaker post to go to the Opposition benches in lieu of agreeing to Birla's nomination as Speaker.

Birla, who served as the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha, is the frontrunner for the position. He was unanimously elected in 2019, becoming the first MP from Kota-Bundi seat from Rajasthan to hold the position. He was re-elected from the constituency in the recently concluded general elections.

K Suresh won his eighth Lok Sabha win from Kerala's Mavelikkara by defeating CPI's CA Arun Kumar.