President Droupadi Murmu on Monday administered oath to BJP member Bhartruhari Mahtab as `speaker pro-tem` of the newly-constituted 18th Lok Sabha, reported news agency PTI.
A seven-time MP, Mahtab, along with a panel of chairpersons is tasked with running the proceedings of the Lok Sabha on Monday and Tuesday when winning candidates will take oath as members of the 18th Lok Sabha, reported PTI.
On Wednesday, he will preside over the House when a new Speaker will be elected.
Mahtab along with the panel of chairpersons was appointed by the president on June 20.
The first parliament session of the 18th Lok Sabha, beginning on Monday, will witness “Observance of silence,” marking the solemn occasion of the first sitting of the Lok Sabha.
After this, parliament will hold the oath-taking ceremony of newly-elected Members of Parliament, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
An official letter marking list of business for the day in parliament mentioned, “Observance of silence for a short while to mark the solemn occasion of the first sitting of the 18th Lok Sabha,”
“Secretary-General to lay on the Table a list (Hindi and English versions), containing the names of Members elected to the Eighteenth Lok Sabha at the General Elections of 2024, submitted by the Election Commission of India,” added the list of business.
Further, the list mentioned “members to take the oath or make the affirmation, sign the Roll of Members and take their seats in the House.”
The first parliament session is expected to be stormy as the opposition is likely to corner the BJP-led NDA government on the election of the Speaker on June 26, discussions regarding allegations of paper leaks in NEET-UG and UGC-NET, and row over the appointment of the pro-tem Speaker.
On June 27, President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to address the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament.
This is the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha after the general elections, which saw the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secure 293 seats and the INDIA bloc win 234, with the Congress holding 100 of them. Meanwhile, the Newly Elected Congress MPs meeting is called at 10 am at the CPP office in Parliament today, reported ANI.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI)