President Draupadi Murmu on Thursday appointed BJP MP Bhartohari Mehtab as the pro tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha under Article 95(1) of the Constitution.
The 18th Lok Sabha, with its newly elected members, will hold its first session from June 24 to July 3, during which the new Speaker of the House will be elected. Until then, the pro tem speaker is elected to perform certain important duties. 'Pro-tem' basically means 'for the time being' or 'temporarily'.
Mehtab, who won six terms from Cuttack on a BJD ticket since 1998, resigned from the regional party in recent years expressing displeasure over its performance. Joined BJP. Before the Lok Sabha elections
Mehtab, son of Odisha's first Chief Minister Harikrishna Mehtab, won Cuttack again in 2024, this time as the BJP candidate, defeating BJD's Santrupath Mishra.
The constitution does not mention the post of pro tem speaker. However, the official 'Handbook on the Working of the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs' mentions the 'appointment and swearing in of the Speaker Pro Tem'. The handbook states that when the office of Speaker becomes vacant before a new Lok Sabha, “the duties of the Speaker shall be performed by a member of the House appointed for the purpose by the President who shall be Speaker Pro-tem.” .
It is the primary duty of the pro tem speaker to administer oath to the new members of the assembly. Under Article 99 of the Constitution, “Every member of the House shall, before taking his seat, take and subscribe an oath or affirmation before the President or a person appointed by him in accordance with the form prescribed for the purpose. Third Schedule to the Constitution.”
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First uploaded by: 20-06-2024 at 20:21 IST