Om Birla (born 23 November 1962)[2] is an Indian politician from Rajasthan. He is currently serving as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha since 19 June 2019, when he was re-elected for a second term in June 2024. He serves as a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha from Kota constituency in Rajasthan since 2014.[3] In 2024, he became the first person in twenty years to be re-elected as an MP to the lower house, after serving as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and also one of only two MPs to be appointed the speaker twice.[4][5]
Om Birla was born to Shrikrishna Birla and Shakuntala Devi in a MarwariHindu family. He completed his master's degree in commerce from Government Commerce College, Kota, and Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University, Ajmer.[3] He married Amita Birla in 1991 and has two daughters, Akansha and Anjali.[9]
Political career
Legislative Assembly
Om Birla won his first assembly elections contesting from Kota South in 2003. He defeated Shanti Dhariwal from Congress by a margin of 10,101 votes. In the next assembly elections, he defended his seat with a comfortable margin of 24,300 votes to his nearest candidate Ram Kishan Verma from Congress in 2008. Before becoming a Member of Parliament, he won his third assembly election against Pankaj Mehta (Congress) by close to 50,000 votes in 2013. During his tenure in 2003–08, he was the Parliamentary Secretary (MoS rank) in Rajasthan Government.[10][1]
His selection for the post of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha for the first time was unexpected.[10] He was elected as speaker for the second time in June 2024.[11]
^"NDA candidate Om Birla elected Speaker of Lok Sabha for 2nd consecutive term". Mathrubhumi. 26 June 2024. Archived from the original on 26 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024. New Delhi: Om Birla, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and Member of Parliament from Kota, Rajasthan, was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha on Wednesday. The motion, moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, was adopted through a voice vote amidst resounding 'Ayes' and 'Noes' echoing in the house. Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab officially declared Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house. Interestingly, the opposition, which had nominated K Suresh as the candidate for the INDIA bloc, chose not to press for a division vote.