The appointment of the pro-tem Speaker has become a focal point of contention between the government and the Opposition. BJP has selected its leader Bhartruhari Mahtab, who is a seven-time MP and was previously associated with the Biju Janta Dal as the pro-tem Speaker.
This has faced criticism from the opposition with the Congress questioning the ruling part why K Suresh a Congress MP eight times was not selected. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju justified the selection by highlighting Mr Mahtab’s seven consecutive terms as a Lok Sabha MP, contrasting it with Mr Suresh’s electoral defeats in 1998 and 2004, and noting that this is Mr. Suresh’s fourth consecutive term in the House.
President Murmu will administer the oath to Mr Mahtab and he will hold the office of the speaker as pro-tem Speaker till the election of the new Speaker is concluded. The President has designated senior members of the House — K Suresh, T R Baalu, Radha Mohan Singh, Faggan Singh Kulaste, and Sudip Bandyopadhyay — to assist the pro-tem Speaker in administering the oath to the new MPs.
In the 17th Lok Sabha Virendra Kumar, a seven-time MP from Tikamgarh in MP was chosen as the pro-tem Speaker. The term ‘Pro-tem’ has its roots in Latin which translates to ‘for the time being’. Therefore the pro-tem Speaker is a temporary post and is only there for a limited period of time.
A pro-tem speaker is required because the Speaker vacates the seat/office immediately before the first meeting of the newly elected house. As per the convention in the house, the senior member is elected as the pro-tem Speaker and the President appoints the Speaker Pro- tem under Article 95(1) of the Constitution to fulfil the Speaker’s duties until the election of a new Speaker.
His primary duty is to preside over the first meeting of the newly elected parliament and to administer the oath of office to the newly elected MPs. He is also involved in conducting the voting for Speaker and Deputy Speaker. The pro-tem Speaker also undertakes a floor test, and when the Speaker is finally elected the office of the pro-tem Speaker ceases to exist.
In Indian history, the inaugural pro-tem Speaker was appointed in 1952 under Article 93 of the Constitution of India. Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar made history as the first pro-tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha, setting a precedent for parliamentary proceedings in the nascent republic.
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