Om Birla | Chair of the House

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has been re-elected as the chair of the Lok Sabha after completing a full five-year term. This move is seen as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s effort to maintain continuity between his previous term and the current one.

After retaining nearly all his Ministers and reappointing his earlier team of officials at the Prime Minister’s Office, it was almost certain that Mr. Birla would be re-nominated as the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) candidate for Speaker. Mr. Birla won the election, but not without some drama, as the Opposition fielded its own candidate and nearly called for a division of votes.

While Mr. Birla’s re-election seemed inevitable this time, it wasn’t always the case. His initial selection as Speaker surprised many, including himself. In Modi’s first term as Prime Minister, the Speaker was the experienced Sumitra Mahajan, an eighth-term MP. For his second term, Modi chose Mr. Birla, a second-term MP from Kota, Rajasthan.

Mr. Birla started his career in student politics in Kota and gradually rose through the ranks of the BJP’s youth wing, the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). He went from being the district unit head of the BJYM to its State president and was elected to the Rajasthan legislature three times. His appointment as Lok Sabha Speaker was a significant leap in both profile and responsibility.

An RSS recruit, Mr. Birla was ideologically aligned with the Sangh Parivar and had earned the trust of Mr. Modi, who had interacted with him on several occasions regarding politics in Rajasthan. Mr. Birla was becoming an important resource for the BJP’s national leadership when the offer to become Speaker came his way.

In his first session as Speaker in 2019, Mr. Birla’s experience as a backbencher helped him manage the House smoothly. He ensured that all first-time MPs got a chance to speak by keeping the Lok Sabha working late into the evening. A record 1,066 subjects were raised during the Zero Hour in the first session, another record.

When Pramila Bisoyi, a first-term MP from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), avoided speaking in Parliament due to her inability to speak Hindi or English, Mr. Birla arranged for an Odia to Hindi translator from the Parliament staff to help her.

Mr. Birla also held Ministers accountable during Question Hour, earning appreciation from many Opposition MPs for ensuring everyone had their say in the House. However, his tenure was marked by controversy when he suspended 100 Opposition MPs during the Winter Session of 2023. On the day of his re-election as Speaker, Mr. Birla condemned the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi’s Cabinet 49 years ago, drawing protests from the Opposition.

The rough start to his second term raises questions about his approach moving forward. Unlike his first term, when the BJP had an absolute majority, this time the BJP has formed a coalition government with NDA allies, and the Opposition appears stronger.

Opposition MPs hope that Mr. Birla will continue his previous accommodative gestures, ensuring all MPs get a chance to speak and holding Ministers accountable. However, if he chooses a confrontational path, it could lead to showdowns. It remains to be seen which approach Mr. Birla will take in his second term.