MP Takes Oath as Maiden Session of Fresh LS Begins
The first session of 15th Lok Sabha commenced on Monday with Pranab Mukherjee and L K Advani leading the newly-elected members in taking oath of affirmation. Manikrao Gavit, seniormost member of the House, presided over the session as Protem Speaker.
Mukherjee, the Leader of the House and Advani, the Leader of Opposition, were the first to take oath and sign the ‘Roll of Members’ after Lok Sabha Secretary General P D T Achary called their names.
Also, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a member of Rajya Sabha, was present in the House.
Immediately after Mukherjee and Advani, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and BJP leader Sumitra Mahajan took oath, former in Hindi and latter in Sanskrit.
Watching the proceedings from the Speaker’s enclosure were Priyanka Gandhi and her husband Robert Vadra, BJP leader Prakash Javadekar, Congress leaders Keshav Rao, Rajiv Shukla and Samajwadi Party’s Ram Gopal Yadav. Former MP Ramdas Athawale was also present in the special gallery.
After the Secretary General tabled the list of members elected to the House, Gavit said that President Pratibha Patil had nominated senior MPs Basudeb Acharia (CPM), Arjun Charan Sethi (BJD), Biren Singh Engti (Congress) and Sumitra Mahajan (BJP) to preside over the administration of oath to the members.
Gavit also informed that the House that SP member Akhilesh Yadav had resigned from his Firozabad seat on May 21. His resignation had been accepted on May 26.
