Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Surama Padhy today (June 20) elected unopposed as the Speaker of the Odisha Assembly. Padhy, a two-time Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) elected from the Ranpur assembly segment in Nayagarh district was the lone candidate for the post. She was elected unopposed as there was no other candidate in the fray.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi moved a motion proposing Padhy's name as the Speaker for the 17th Assembly session which was seconded by the state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukesh Mahaling. After the voice vote, pro-tem speaker Ranendra Pratap Swain declared 63-year-old Padhy as the second female speaker of the Odisha Assembly.
Pro-tem Speaker RP Swain announced her election and handed over the charge to her in the special session of the Assembly. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Deputy chief ministers- KV Singh Deo, Pravati Parida, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Naveen Patnaik and other members of the House greeted the new Speaker.
The new Speaker was later escorted to the chair by CM Majhi, Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik, Deputy Chief Ministers KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida.
2nd woman Speaker of Odisha Assembly
Padhy is the second woman to become Speaker of the Odisha Assembly after Pramila Mallick of BJD. After her election, Padhy said, "I express my heartfelt gratitude to all for electing me as the Speaker of this August House. I hail from a humble family and never thought of occupying such a prestigious post and responsibility. I am overwhelmed. It is our combined responsibility to maintain the dignity of this House. Therefore, I seek your cooperation. I will do my best to maintain neutrality with the cooperation of all."
"I will discharge my responsibilities impartially and uphold the dignity of the chair with the help of all the members," added Padhy.
CM Manjhi congratulates new Speaker
The chief minister congratulated the new Speaker and sought the cooperation of all members including those in opposition to cooperate with Padhy for the smooth functioning of the House.
While congratulating the new speaker of the Odisha Assembly, CM Majhi said, "After you assume the charge today, I am fully confident that you will uphold the dignity of this August House and run it properly without any bias."
LoP Naveen Patnaik congratulates Speaker Surama
Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik said, "I congratulate you (Padhy) as the speaker of the 17th Assembly. I am sure that during your tenure as Speaker, you will uphold the dignity of this August House. I also hope that the members will cooperate in the smooth functioning of the House."
Congress Legislature Party leader Taraprasad Bahinipati and CPI (M)'s lone MLA Laxman Munda also congratulated Padhy on being elected Speaker of Odisha Assembly.
Know more about Surama Padhy
Padhy on Wednesday (June 19) filed nominations for the Speaker's post in the state Assembly. She filed the nomination in the presence of CM Majhi, both the deputy chief ministers and other party leaders.
Sixty-three year old Padhy this time won the election from Ranpur Assembly segment. She defeated Satyanarayan Pradhan of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) by a margin of around 15,544 votes.
In 2004, Padhy was elected from Ranpur and served as the Cooperation Minister in the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD-BJP alliance government. In September 2023, senior BJD leader Pramila Mallick created history by becoming the first woman speaker of Odisha Assembly.
The ruling BJP has 78 MLAs in the 147-member Odisha Assembly. Earlier, Padhy was elected to the state Assembly twice from Ranpur constituency in Nayagarh district during 2004-2009. She was also the Minister of State (Independent charges) for the Department of Co-operation, Odisha during the above period.
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