First Session Of 18th Lok Sabha To Commence Today, PM Modi & Council Of Ministers To Take Oath

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha is set to begin tomorrow, during which PM Modi and Council of Ministers will take oath as members of the House.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha is set to begin tomorrow, during which PM Modi and Council of Ministers will take oath as members of the House. ( Image Source :PTI )

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha is set to begin tomorrow, which will witness the newly-elected members, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, taking oath. This will be followed by the election of the Lok Sabha Speaker on June 26 and President Droupadi Murmu's address to a joint sitting of both the Houses, scheduled for June 27.

This will be the first after the Lok Sabha elections 2024, which were held across seven phases during April to June. The general elections this year saw NDA emerge as winner with 293 seats. However, BJP could not cross the majority mark independently, securing 240 seats. The opposition's I.N.D.I.A bloc bagged 234 seats, with Congress winning 99 of them.

The session will commence after President Murmu will administer the oath to BJP leader and seven-term member Bhartruhari Mahtab as the pro-tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, news agency PTI reported.

The appointment of Mahtab has received criticism from the opposition that alleged that Congress members Kodikunnil Suresh's claim to the post was overlooked. However, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stressed that Mahtab has held seven consecutive terms as the Lok Sabha member, which made him eligible for the post, eighth time in a row.

Here's what will happen during the first parliamentary session and the days ahead as per a PTI report:

• President Murmu will administer oath to pro-tem Speaker Mahtab, who will then reach the Parliament House to call the Lok Sabha to order at 11:00 AM.
• The proceedings will begin thereafter, with members observing a moment of silence to mark the first sitting of the 18th Lok Sabha.
• Subsequently, Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh will place the list of the newly-elected members on the table of the House.
• The pro-tem Speaker will then call upon PM Modi, the Leader of the Lok Sabha, to begin by taking oath as member of the House.
• The panel of chairpersons appointed by the President to assist Mahtab in carrying out the House's proceedings till the election of the Speaker, will then take oath next.
• This panel includes T R Baalu (DMK), Kodikunnil Suresh (Congress), Faggan Singh Kulaste and Radha Mohan Singh (both BJP), and Sudip Bandyopadhyay (TMC).
• The pro-tem speaker will then administer the oath to the Council of Ministers.
• Over the next two days, the members from states will take oath in alphabetical order.
• On June 26, the election to the post of Lok Sabha Speaker will take place, following which PM Modi will introduce his council of ministers to the House.
• The President on Thursday will address the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament, after which the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the address of the President will begin on June 28.
• The prime minister is liekely to respond to this debate next month, on July 2 or 3.
• The Houses will then take a brief recess and re-assemble on July 22, when the Union Budget will be presented. 

Meanwhile, Lok Sabha MPs from the I.N.D.I.A bloc have decided to march to the House together on the first day of the 18th Lok Sabha session. They will assemble in the Parliament complex near Gate No 2 of the old Parliament building, a senior opposition party leader told PTI.

The politician also said that some of the MPs will hold copies of the Constitution, while walking down to the Parliament building on Monday.

Even though NDA managed to form the government, several opposition parties claimed that the mandate of Lok Sabha elections 2024 was against the ruling BJP. The bloc has also claimed they were backed by people as they wanted opposition parties to save the Constitution, PTI reported.