Congress upset over pro-tem speaker election, will not assist during oath-taking of MPs

Parliament Session: Congress and India Bloc MPs decided not to assist the pro-tem Speaker during the oath-taking ceremony of MPs after BJP’s Bhratruhari Mahtab was appointed as pro-tem Speaker instead of the more senior Congress MP K Suresh. This decision broke the tradition of appointing the senior-most MP. Congress criticized the government’s decision, highlighting that an eighth-term Dalit MP was overlooked. The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha will include the oath-taking of MPs and the election of the Speaker.