I urge Cong not to force elections for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker: Kiren Rijiju

New Delhi, Jun 25 (PTI) Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday urged the Congress not to force a contest for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker as the presiding officer does not belong to any party.

Rijiju's remarks came after Congress leader Kodikunnil Suresh filed the nomination for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker against the NDA nominee Om Birla, forcing a rare election to the post after 48 years.

"I appeal again that they should think about keeping in mind the dignity of the post of Speaker. We have the numbers but still, we are requesting that there should be no election for the post of Speaker because this post does not belong to any party," the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said.

He said the government had contacted major opposition parties over the last two days for consensus on the post of the Speaker.

"We want the Speaker to be elected unanimously and unopposed, so we contacted and appealed to them. Today, we had a meeting with Congress leaders. We appealed to them for support for the Speaker. They said that they will support but they want the post of Deputy Speaker," Rijiju said.

The minister said the NDA floor managers said the election to the post of Speaker and Deputy Speaker were separate processes and it would be improper to combine both.

"The attitude of the Congress party was clear that if we did not agree to their conditions, they would not support (NDA candidate for) the post of Speaker," Rijiju said. PTI