NEW DELHI: Senior BJD MP Bhartruhari Mahtab opened proceedings in Lok Sabha on Thursday, deputising for Speaker Om Birla , and delivered a strong disapproval of protests by Congress MPs who were in the well of the House, his role as presiding officer deepening the view of BJD-BJP proximity.

The criticism of Congress’s actions also sparked a buzz over whether the post of deputy speaker may finally be filled. The choice of Mahtab as presiding officer came on a day PM Narendra Modi tweeted his praise for the late Biju Patnaik , on his birth anniversary.

The deputy speaker post is seen as reserved for a BJP ally. If it goes to BJD, it would tie BJP and the Odisha outfit in an even closer political clinch.

