Narendra Modi & Rahul Gandhi share a warm moment at the Lok Sabha well as Birla is named Speaker

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi shook hands at the Lok Sabha well as NDA candidate Om Birla was voted as Speaker of the Lower House on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Modi and Gandhi, now elected Leader of Opposition, often at odds, were seen sharing a warm moment as they walked Birla to the Speaker's chair. Modi & Gandhi previously shared a similar moment in the Lok Sabha when the latter walked up to the former and hugged him, taking him by surprise.

Birla, an MP from Kota, was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha. His nomination was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was passed by the House through a voice vote.


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The chamber resounded with calls of 'Ayes' and 'Noes' before pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab announced Om Birla as the new Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Although the opposition had nominated K. Suresh as the Speaker candidate from the INDIA bloc, they chose not to request a division vote.


In his first speech as the LoP, Gandhi congratulated Birla for being re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker and said that the Lok Sabha Speaker is the final arbiter of the voice of the people.

He said that the Opposition this time represents that voice significantly more than the 17th Lok Sabha.

"I would like to congratulate you for your successful election that you have been elected for the second time. I would like to congratulate you on behalf of the entire Opposition and the INDIA alliance."

"This House represents the voice of India's people and you are the final arbiter of that voice. The government has political power but the opposition also represents the voice of India's people and this time, the opposition represents significantly more voice of the Indian people than it did last time," the Congress MP said.