Om Birla: Won't allow chanting of religious slogans in Parliament

Pic/ANI

Newly elected Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla addressed the house after being unanimously elected as the speaker on Wednesday and said that he will run the House in an impartial manner by taking everyone along while asserting that the chair should not be biased.

He added that he would not allow chanting of religious slogans which greeted some opposition MP's when they were being sworn in on Tuesday.

Hindustan Times quoted him saying, "I don't think Parliament is the place for sloganeering, for showing placards, or for coming to the well. There is a road for that where they can go and demonstrate. Whatever people want to say here, whatever allegations they have, however they want to attack the government they can, but they can't come to the gallery and do all this," Birla said after his unanimous election as speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha.

He was questioned that if he could hold out an assurance that such heckling would never take place again to which he replied that he couldn't. "I don't know if it will happen again but we will try to run Parliament by the rules,'' he said, adding, "Jai Shri Ram slogans, Jai Bharat, Vande Mataram, I said this was an old issue. During a debate, it is different. Every time, there are different circumstances. What are the circumstances is decided by the person sitting in the speaker's chair."

Birla also assured the members that he will preside over the proceedings in accordance with rules and regulations, and "safeguard the interests of the members irrespective of the strength of their parties in the House".

Birla also appreciated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for running a transparent government. He said that he expects the "government to be more responsible and answerable in the House". Birla also thanked the prime minister, his party and all the other members of the House for putting their faith in him.

He sought cooperation from all the members for the smooth functioning of the House and said they should raise the questions and issues that come under the ambit of the central government.
"I have been a member like you from 2014 to 2019. And here, we should raise the issues which matter to the last person standing in the row," he said.

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