As per report be it Telangana’s legislative assembly or Karnataka’s, the presence of Muslims as Speakers has ignited a fierce debate. Meanwhile with preparations underway to elect the new Speaker for Telangana’s third legislative assembly on december 14, Speakers of both state assemblies find themselves embroiled in controversies surrounding their religion. In Karnataka, UT Khader, a five-time mla from Mangaluru’s coastal region, made history as the state’s first Muslim Speaker. However, protests erupted as the opposition bjp and JD(S) staged a day-long agitation, demanding the suspension of congress minister Zameer ahmed Khan. The Opposition also claimed that Khader has been behaving like a ‘dictator’ and a ‘Congress Speaker’.

Across the data-border in telangana, newly elected bjp MLAs refused to participate in the oath-taking ceremony, opposing the appointment of akbaruddin owaisi of the AIMIM as the pro-tem Speaker. Goshamahal’s bjp mla Raja Singh refused to take the oath in front of Owaisi, insisting he would do so only when the Speaker is elected to the House. Following protocol, the senior-most member of the state assembly assumes the role of the pro-tem Speaker. Congress’ Uttam reddy argued that technically, he should have been in the position. However, since he took an oath as a minister, the procedure mandated the legislature secretariat to appoint the next senior-most, which was Akbaruddin Owaisi.

On Thursday, the election for the telangana assembly speaker will take place. Reportedly, the congress has finalised the name of Vikarabad mla Gaddam prasad Kumar, a Dalit leader who previously served as a minister in the congress government in undivided Andhra Pradesh. If the assembly secretariat receives just one nomination, Owaisi will announce Prasad’s unanimous election. However, if multiple nominations are submitted, an election will be conducted via ballot. Kumar’s election is anticipated to proceed smoothly, given that a majority of the MLAs are from the ruling Congress. In reply to Khan’s remarks, senior bjp leader CT ravi stated that when bjp leaders show respect, it is directed towards the constitutional position, “not the Mullah of Jamia Masjid”. He emphadata-sized that the Speaker’s role is distinct from that of a ‘Maulwi’ in a mosque, and unlike addressing a Maulwi with terms like ‘Ji’ or ‘Huzoor,’ bjp MLAs do not use such titles when addressing the Speaker.