A senior YSRCP leader said the party never opposed NDA's decisions earlier and the same trend will be followed now.
BJP's Om Birla and Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh (X)
The Lok Sabha is set to witness elections for the Speaker post on Wednesday, 26 June, with both Birla and Suresh filing their nominations as NDA and INDIA bloc candidates, respectively.
While the TDP, which is part of the NDA alliance has issued a whip to its 16 Lok Sabha members to vote for NDA’s Om Birla in Wednesday’s Speaker election, the Opposition party in Andhra Pradesh—YSRCP—is also likely to vote for Om Birla.
In a three-line whip, issued on Tuesday, 25 June, TDP’s Amalapuram MP Harish Balayogi directed all the MPs to assemble at room number 111–B by 10:30 am on Wednesday.
“Harish Balayogi, whip of the Telugu Desam Party has issued a three-line whip to all TDP Members of Parliament, mandating their presence and vote for the NDA candidate, Om Birla, in the upcoming Speaker election scheduled for June 26, 2024,” said a TDP press note on Tuesday.
TDP is part of the NDA in Andhra Pradesh, along with BJP and Janasena.
The alliance won 21 Lok Sabha seats, which include 16 by TDP, two by Janasena and three by BJP and also swept the Assembly elections with a landslide victory.
The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP is too likely to support NDA candidate Om Birla, in case its support is needed.
The party has four Lok Sabha members.
However, the party’s Rajampet MP PV Midhun Reddy said YSRCP is yet to announce its decision and it will be disclosed on Wednesday.
“Officially we will announce our decision tomorrow but our support will be natural for the NDA candidate,” YSRCP sources told PTI.
Further, the sources noted that no YSRCP MP was in touch with the INDI alliance, which is also contesting the Speaker election.
Another senior YSRCP leader said the party never opposed NDA’s decisions earlier and the same trend will be followed now.
In the recent simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, YSRCP contested against the NDA which comprised the TDP, BJP and Janasena. It suffered a humiliating defeat and managed to win four Lok Sabha and 11 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh.
Birla served as Speaker in the previous Lok Sabha as well and if he wins he would be the first person to get the post for the second term in 25 years. Before filing his nomination, Birla also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has returned to the Lok Sabha for the third time from Kota in Rajasthan,
Suresh, an eight-time MP from Kerala, said it is not about winning or losing, but about a convention, the Speaker will be of the ruling party and the deputy Speaker will be of the Opposition.
(With PTI inputs)
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