TMC sought voting, Cong for consensus on Speaker election

THE Opposition INDIA bloc constituents Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Congress appeared to be not on the same page on demanding a division of votes in the election for the Lok Sabha speaker on Wednesday.

- PREETHA NAIR

While TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee said that the pro-tem speaker did not allow voting in the Speaker election even as several opposition MPs sought a division of votes, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh insisted that the INDIA bloc did not seek a division of votes.

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, Banerjee said that, according to the rules, division of votes has to be allowed even if a single member demands it.

"The rule says that if any member of the House asks for division, the pro-tem speaker has to allow it. You can clearly see and hear from the footage of the Lok Sabha that several members of the opposition sought and asked for a division," he said.