Bhubaneswar: Former minister and senior BJP leader Surama Padhy takes charge as Odisha Assembly Speaker. The MLAs of all parties, including the Chief Minister, congratulated her.
She was elected unopposed as there was no other candidate in the fray.
Pro-tem Speaker R P Swain announced her election and handed over the charge to her in the special session of the Assembly.
After assuming the post, Padhy becomes the second woman after Pramila Mallik to hold the speaker post.
Notably, Padhy filed the nomination papers for the Odisha Assembly Speaker’s post in the presence of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and two Deputy Chief Ministers KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida.
Also Read: Senior BJP leader Surama Padhy files nomination for Odisha Assembly Speaker
A lawyer by profession, Surma joined the BJP in 1988. Padhy was first elected to the Odisha Assembly from Ranpur seat in Nayagarh district on a BJP ticket in 2004. She also served as a Minister of State with Independent Charge in the Cooperation Department in the BJD-BJP coalition government in Odisha from 2004 to 2009.
This time, the BJP has formed a government of its own in Odisha after the saffron party won 78 seats out of the 147 members in the Odisha Assembly. The BJD has 51 MLAs, Congress 14, CPI(M) 1, and independents 3.
Though the BJP has 78 members, it has secured the support of three independent MLAs, taking the saffron party’s strength to 81 in the 147-member Odisha Legislative Assembly.
