New Delhi: Ahead of the elections for the post of Lok Sabha speaker, the Congress party has issued a three-line whip to its MPs to be present in Parliament tomorrow from 11 a.m. onwards, an official statement by the party said. "All members of the Congress party in the Lok Sabha are requested to kindly remain present in the House from 11 a.m. onwards till the adjournment of the House on June 26 without fail and support the party stand", the official release read. Having failed to reach a consensus on the appointment of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Om Birla, the opposition INDIA bloc has nominated Congress MP K Suresh for the post of Lok Sabha speaker. The opposition had been demanding the post of Deputy Speaker, however, with no clarity forthcoming from the BJP, the INDIA bloc has put forward Congress MP K Suresh's name for the Speaker's post. On the other hand, BJP has nominated its Kota MP Om Birla for the Speaker's post, who previously served as the Speaker in the 17th Lok Sabha. Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that they had informed Rajnath Singh that the Opposition is prepared to support NDA's Speaker candidate, on the condition that the Deputy Speaker position is given to the opposition. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi said, "We have said to Rajnath Singh that we will support their Speaker (candidate) but the convention is that the post of Deputy Speaker is given to the Opposition." Further elaborating on discussions between Rajnath Singh and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul also criticized the treatment of opposition leaders, alleging disrespect. "Today it is written in the newspaper that PM Modi has said that the Opposition should cooperate with the government constructively. Rajnath Singh called Mallikarjun Kharge and he asked him to extend support to the Speaker. The entire Opposition said that we would support the speaker, but the convention is that the Deputy Speaker post should be given to the opposition. Rajnath Singh said that he would call back Mallikarjun Kharge but he has not done that yet...PM Modi is asking for cooperation from Opposition but our leader is getting insulted," he said. The elections for the speaker's post will be held on June 26. The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, holds a clear majority, while the opposition INDIA bloc comprises 234 MPs.
