Telangana BJP boycotts oath-taking ceremony over AIMIM Protem Speaker appointment

The Telangana BJP boycotted the oath-taking ceremony for the newly elected MLAs on Saturday. This decision stems from their objection to the appointment of Akbaruddin Owaisi from the AIMIM as the Protem Speaker for the state assembly. The Protem Speaker's role involves administering the oath of office to the incoming legislators.

In the recent Telangana Assembly election, the BJP secured victory in eight seats. G Kishan Reddy, the state unit chief of the party, expressed his displeasure over the appointment of Akbaruddin Owaisi, stating that it goes against the customary practice of appointing senior MLAs as the Protem Speaker. "BJP MLAs will boycott taking oath before this Protem Speaker. Our MLAs will take oath after a Speaker is appointed. We will never ally with such a party (AIMIM). We will go to the Governor on this," said G Kishan Reddy.

BJP MLAs of Telangana believe that the newly appointed Chief Minister, Revanth Reddy from the Congress, is apprehensive of the AIMIM, much like his predecessor K Chandrashekar Rao. This fear allegedly led to the decision to allow Akbaruddin Owaisi to assume the role of Protem Speaker.

BJP MLA from the Goshamal constituency, T Raja Singh conveyed his refusal to take the oath in a video message. He asserted that he would refrain from doing so "as long as he is alive" in the presence of AIMIM. Singh emphasized his intention to take the oath only after a full-term speaker is designated. He raised concerns, questioning whether he could pledge allegiance in front of Akbaruddin Owaisi, who has previously made remarks deemed anti-Hindu. Back in 2018, Raja Singh declined to take the oath because the Protem Speaker appointed at that time also belonged to the AIMIM.

Akbaruddin Owaisi having been elected for the sixth time from the Chandrayangutta constituency would first be sworn in as the Protem Speaker and subsequently administer the oath to the elected MLAs on the same day. According to the protocol, the Protem Speaker position is typically given to the most senior MLA in the assembly.

However, T Raja Singh has argued that several other senior MLAs could have been chosen for the Protem Speaker role. He contended that the new Chief Minister's decision was driven by an attempt to appease the minority community.