4 min readNew DelhiMar 10, 2026 05:15 AM IST
THE LOK Sabha on Monday could not take up the notice seeking to remove Speaker Om Birla from office amid repeated adjournments following protests from the Opposition benches demanding a discussion on the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
The Opposition’s resolution is now likely to be taken up on Tuesday, soon after the Question Hour.
Listed against the names of Congress MPs Mohammad Jawed, K Suresh and Mallu Ravi and backed by the Trinamool Congress, the resolution has been signed by 118 Opposition members.
The discussion on the motion may see Union Home Minister Amit Shah among key speakers reply on behalf of the government, said the sources.
The Opposition has alleged that Birla acted in a “blatantly partisan” manner while conducting the proceedings of the House in the first phase of the Budget Session which ended February 13.
Birla is voluntarily staying away from the Speaker’s chair and House proceedings until the no-confidence motion against him is resolved. Sources pointed out that Birla, according to the Rules, could have attended House proceedings as a member, but did not do so “on moral grounds”.
The Speaker can defend himself and vote on the resolution, but cannot chair proceedings when the matter is being discussed. Article 96(2) states that the Speaker has the right to speak and take part in the proceedings while such a resolution is under consideration. He may sit in prominent rows of the treasury benches.
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Unlike other MPs who vote through the automated voting system from their designated seats, Birla will cast his vote using a voting slip because he will not be occupying the Speaker’s chair.
What does the rulebook say
Rule 201(2) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha states that the member in whose name the resolution stands must move it when called upon to do so. At that stage, no speech is permitted. The presiding officer will then place the resolution before the House and request the members who are in favour of granting leave to the resolution rise in their places. If 50 or more members rise, the resolution will be taken up for discussion and disposed of within 10 days. If fewer than 50 members stand in support, the motion lapses.
Though the discussion on the resolution against Birla was said to have been allotted 10 hours, Opposition members said after Monday’s washout due to adjournments, the time frame for the debate may be “curtailed to around four to five hours”.
Given the BJP-led NDA’s numerical advantage in the Lok Sabha – it has 292 MPs compared to 234 belonging to the INDIA bloc and other Opposition parties – the motion is unlikely to be cleared by the House.
It has, however, allowed the Opposition to put on record its long-standing allegation of bias against the Speaker, sharpen its attack on the government over the functioning of the House and act as somewhat of a unifying factor for non-BJP members of the House.
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Even if all the Opposition members vote together, the total will fall short of the simple majority required to remove the Speaker under Article 94(c) of the Constitution, which guides proceedings in this regard.
According to sources, there was lack of clarity on when and for how long the resolution would be taken up since the Business Advisory Committee was yet to take a call on the matter. The sources said that the quorum of the House — at least 50 MPs rising in its favour — has to be fulfilled for the procedure to take place.
This is not the first time that a no-confidence motion against the Speaker has been moved by the Opposition. The first Speaker of the Lok Sabha G V Mavalankar faced no-confidence motion in December 1954. Similar resolutions were moved against Hukam Singh in November 1966 and against Balram Jakhar in April 1987. In each of these cases, the motion failed and the Speaker remained in office.
