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Meira Kumar elected Lok Sabha Speaker unopposed
New Delhi, Jun 3
The Speaker, Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar briefing the media, at Parliament House today.
Ms Kumar, 64, is the first woman to be elected to the coveted position and the second Dalit leader, after the late G M C Balayogi, to occupy the chair.
The election of the Speaker was taken up soon after all the newly-elected members of the House had finished taking the oath of affirmation. The first two days of the maiden session of the new Lok Sabha and the early part of today were reserved for the new members to take oath.
Another former Union Minister, Mr Karia Munda of the BJP, is set to become the Deputy Speaker after the UPA offered the post to the opposition party as per convention. The election for the Deputy Speaker's position will be held later, but Mr Munda is also expected to be elected unopposed.
Mr Manikrao Gavit, 75, a Congress MP and the seniormost member of the House, conducted the proceedings of the House as pro tem Speaker till the new Speaker was elected.
Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi moved a motion proposing that Ms Kumar be elected as Speaker of the House, which was seconded by Finance Minister and Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee.
A similar proposal was then moved by Leader of the Opposition Lal Krishna Advani and seconded by Deputy Opposition Leader Sushma Swaraj, both of the BJP.
Motions proposing Ms Kumar's name for the post were also moved by, among others, Ms Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, Mr T R Baalu of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, Mr Sharad Yadav of the Janata Dal (U), Mr Sharad Pawar of the Nationalist Congress Party, Dr Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference, Mr Lalu Prasad Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Mr E Ahamed of the Indian Union Muslim League.
The House adopted the motions with a voice vote, after which Mr Gavit declared her elected as Speaker.
Immediately afterwards, Prime Miniser Manmohan Singh, Mr Mukherjee and Mr Advani escorted Ms Kumar to the Speaker's chair as per tradition.
Dr Singh said that Ms Kumar's election to the august office was, in many ways, a historic occasion in that it was the first time a woman has been elected to the post, who also happens to be from the Dalit community.
The Speaker, Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar with the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, L K Advani, the Union Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, the Chairperson, UPA, Sonia Gandhi and other dignitaries at Parliament House today.
He said that, in electing her, the House was paying tribute to all women in India for their great services and contributions to the nation's life.
The Prime Minister recalled his association with Ms Kumar's father, former Deputy Prime Minister Jagjivan Ram, and said she was the embodiment of many of his qualities.
He also said that Ms Kumar had a distinguished record of service to the country as a diplomat, as a member of Parliament and as a Union Minister. "The knowledge and experience will stand you in good stead," he said.
He also felt that Ms Kumar's charm, grace and tact would help her in handling frayed tempers in the House.
Mr Mukherjee hoped the 15th Lok Sabha would be see fewer obstructions by members and more debates and discussions. He said there could be divergence of views but these must be discussed and debated. He also said that Ms Kumar had been elected to a post that had been held by great personalities in the past, all of whom had set a great record of impartiality and correct decisions.
Mr Advani recalled his association with the late Jagjivan Ram, when they were both ministers in the Morarji Desai government, and said that his administrative skills had impressed everyone.
Others who felicitated Ms Kumar included Mr Basudev Acharia of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mr Baalu, Mr Pawar, Mr Sharad Yadav, Mr Gurudas Dasgupta of the Communist Party of India and Mr Lalu Prasad Yadav.
Ms Kumar, who was sworn in as a Cabinet Minister on May 22 and had taken over the portfolio of Water Resources last Friday, resigned from the Union Council of Ministers on Sunday.
Ms Kumar is a former officer of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). She had served as the Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment in the previous UPA government.
She has a Master's degree in English and a degree in Law, as well as an advanced diploma in Spanish. This is her fifth term in the Lok Sabha. She has served on various parliamentary committees and has been a General Secretary of the Congress party and a member of its working committee.
She joined the IFS in 1973 and served in Indian missions in Madrid and London as well as in the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi before resigning from the service in 1985 to join politics.
NNN
