Om Birla (born 23 November 1962) is an Indian politician of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. He was first elected to the post in June 2019 and re-elected in June 2024, becoming the first Speaker in decades to serve two consecutive terms. He represents Kota-Bundi in Rajasthan and was a three-time member of the state assembly before entering Parliament in 2014.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Om Birla |
| Born | 23 November 1962, Kota, Rajasthan, India |
| Age | 63 |
| Party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Office | Speaker of the Lok Sabha (2019–present) |
| Constituency | Kota-Bundi (Lok Sabha, since 2014) |
| Education | Government Commerce College, Kota; Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University, Ajmer (M.Com.) |
| Spouse | Dr Amita Birla (m. 1991) |
| Children | 2 daughters (Akanksha and Anjali) |
Early Life
Birla was born in Kota into a Marwari family; his father, Shrikrishna Birla, was a government employee. He became president of his school students’ union in 1979 and rose through the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, the BJP’s youth wing, heading it in Kota, then in Rajasthan and serving as its national vice-president. He was also active in the cooperative movement.
Political Career
He won the Kota South assembly seat in 2003, defeating the Congress veteran Shanti Dhariwal, and held it in 2008 and 2013. He was a parliamentary secretary in the state government.
He won Kota in 2014 and 2019. On 19 June 2019, as a second-term MP with little national profile, he was elected Speaker unopposed. He ran the House through the pandemic with members seated across both chambers and galleries, cut the cost of parliamentary canteen subsidies and presided over the move to the new Parliament building in September 2023. In December 2023 he suspended 100 opposition members of the Lok Sabha in the days after a security breach in the chamber. After the 2024 election the opposition forced a rare contest for the Speaker’s post; he won by voice vote on 26 June 2024, defeating K. Suresh of the Congress.
Social Work
In Kota he is known for schemes that give free meals, clothes and medicines to the poor and for organising help for students who come to the city’s coaching institutes.
Personal Life
He married Amita, a doctor, in 1991. Their younger daughter, Anjali, joined the civil service.
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where was Om Birla born?
Om Birla was born on 23 November 1962 in Kota, Rajasthan, India and is 63 years old.
Featured image: Om Birla, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, at the All India Presiding Officers’ Conference, Patna, 21 January 2025. Photo by Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, licensed under Government Open Data License – India, via Wikimedia Commons.
