Om Birla files nomination as NDA candidate for speaker's post

Kota MP Om Birla on Tuesday filed nomination for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker as an NDA consensus candidate, a position he held in the previous House.

JD(U) leader and Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh told reporters here that Birla's name was decided unanimously by all NDA parties and that senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh also reached out to the opposition for their support.

Hitting out at the opposition, Lalan Singh said they wanted a decision on the post of deputy speaker immediately despite Rajnath Singh requesting that everyone should sit together and discuss the issue when the time comes for the selection.

His Cabinet colleague Piyush Goyal said it would have been better to have an consensus candidate and criticised the opposition for putting forth conditions. Democracy cannot be run on conditions, he asserted.

The opposition INDIA bloc has fielded Congress leader K Suresh as its candidate for the speaker's post.