Source: Hueiyen News Service / Agency
New Delhi, June 01 2009:
It will be 'Madam speaker' for the first time in the Lok Sabha which boasts of a record number of members of the fairer sex this time.
Meira Kumar, set to be the next Lok Sabha speaker, will be creating history by becoming the first Dalit woman leader to occupy the coveted post.
Unlike 'Mr speaker Sir' being addressed to the Chair in the Lower House, the new presiding officer will be called 'Madam speaker'.
In fact, it is woman power galore in the new House with Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi leading the group.
Besides, the 59 women members comprise the high and mighty of politics like Mamta Banerjee of Trinamool Congress, whose party with 19 members is the second largest in the ruling alliance after the Congress.There are several woman ministers in the Union Council, including Ambika Soni, Kumari Selja, D Purandeshwari, Krishna Tirath, Panabaka Lakshmi and Praneet Kaur.
Agatha Sangma (28) is the 'baby' of the cabinet while Meira Kumar herself was a cabinet minister till last night.
Among the leading lights of the opposition are Sushma Swaraj of BJP as also Sumitra Mahajan.
Jaya Prada of Samajwadi Party has literally fought her way to the Lok Sabha for the second time.
The first-timers include Shruti Chaudhury (Congress), Supriya Sule (NCP), Jyoti Mirdha (Congress), Shatabdi Roy (Trinamool), Mausam Noor (Congress) and Anu Tandon (Congress) .