Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar Supports Bhartruhari Mahtab as Pro-tem Speaker Amid Congress Protests

Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar has backed the decision to appoint senior parliamentarian Bhartruhari Mahtab as the pro-tem Speaker. This comes amid demands from the Congress party to appoint K Suresh instead. Majumdar criticized Congress, stating they should not discuss conventions due to their history of breaching them.

Majumdar said, “The opposition has got more seats this time. So, they are raising their voice on every issue. Bhartruhari Mahtab is a senior parliamentarian. He is an elected MP consecutively for the 7th time. They are demanding K Suresh to be appointed as pro-tem Speaker. He has been elected for the 8th time, but his service period is non-consecutive.”

He further added, “Congress has breached the conventions a lot of times. Those who had imposed emergency should not talk about the conventions.”

Majumdar also congratulated the newly-elected parliamentarians, noting that it would be a historic occasion for first-time MPs entering the new Parliament building.

Bhartruhari Mahtab was sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha by President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan. This ceremony marked the beginning of the 18th Lok Sabha’s first session, starting with the oath-taking of new MPs.

In response to Mahtab’s appointment, leaders from the INDIA bloc, including Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, party leader Rahul Gandhi, and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, protested inside the Parliament premises. Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi stated, “The ruling party hasn’t forgotten their haughtiness…we can see that they are ignoring the key subjects of the country…the whole Dalit community in India could witness a historic scene if K Suresh were appointed as Pro-tem Speaker…today, BJP has not just neglected Congress, INDIA alliance and K Suresh but the whole Dalit community…”