BJP's Surama Padhy Set to Become Odisha Assembly Speaker

Senior BJP leader Surama Padhy has filed her nomination for the Speaker of the Odisha Legislative Assembly. Supported by key political figures, Padhy is likely to be the sole candidate, succeeding as the second woman Speaker in the state's history after Pramila Mallik.

Senior BJP leader and Ranpur MLA Surama Padhy officially submitted her nomination for the Odisha Legislative Assembly Speaker position on Wednesday. Accompanied by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and deputy chief ministers KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida, her submission was made to Dasarathi Satpathy, the assembly's secretary. The BJP legislature party had unanimously selected Padhy's name for the significant role.

Odisha Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukesh Mahaling announced that Chief Minister Majhi has reached out to BJD President Naveen Patnaik, seeking support for Padhy's candidacy. At 63, Padhy appears to be running unopposed, with no opposition candidate fielded by BJD. Should this remain unchanged, she will be declared the Speaker of the 17th Odisha Legislative Assembly on Thursday, marking her as the second woman to hold this distinguished position after Pramila Mallik, the Speaker of the 16th Assembly.

Padhy's political journey began in 2004 when she was first elected to the Odisha Assembly from Ranpur constituency under the BJP banner. She served as a Minister of State for the Cooperation department with Independent charge during the BJD-BJP coalition government from 2004 to 2009. In the current political landscape, the BJP has established a solo government in Odisha, winning 78 seats out of 147, securing an overall strength of 81 with independent MLA support.

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