Cong leader Shanimol Osman becomes Kerala Assembly’s 4th woman deputy speaker

Shanimol Osman of the Congress was elected Deputy Speaker of the Kerala Assembly, becoming the first woman from the party in 66 years to hold the post. She won with strong UDF backing, marking a historic milestone in Kerala’s legislative history

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress legislator Shanimol Osman was on Tuesday elected Deputy Speaker of the Kerala Assembly, becoming the first woman from the party to occupy the post in 66 years and only the fourth woman in the state’s legislative history to hold the office.

Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan declared Osman elected after a formal vote in the Assembly. The two-time legislator defeated CPI nominee and three-time MLA Muhammed Muhassin in an election that reflected the overwhelming numerical advantage enjoyed by the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in the 140-member House.

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“Osman secured 99 votes, and Muhassin got 34 votes. Four legislators abstained, and that included me,” said Radhakrishnan. The Speaker then asked her to take her new seat, the first seat in the opposition benches, next to Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, who congratulated her.

The UDF currently commands 102 members in the Assembly, while the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) has 25 legislators. The BJP has three MLAs. The BJP members remained seated during the voting process and did not participate.

During the Speaker’s election earlier, however, the party had fielded its own candidate who secured the support of its three legislators. Osman, who represents the Aroor constituency, assumes the constitutional post three days after she turned 60.

Her election marks the culmination of a long and often difficult political journey spanning several electoral battles. Known for her soft-spoken demeanour, Osman is regarded as a seasoned Congress leader who has contested six elections, including the 2019 Lok Sabha election from Alappuzha.

She tasted electoral success for the first time in the 2019 Alappuzha Assembly by-election but lost the subsequent 2021 Assembly election. She returned to the legislature with a victory from Aroor in the 2026 Assembly polls.

Her election also revives a long-dormant chapter in Kerala’s legislative history. The last Congress leader to serve as Deputy Speaker was A Nafeesath Beevi, who was elected to the post in 1960.

In the first Kerala Legislative Assembly, CPI leader KO Aisha Bai had served as Deputy Speaker, while CPI leader Bhargavi Thankapan became the last woman to occupy the chair in 1987.

With Osman’s election, the Kerala Assembly once again has a woman in the Deputy Speaker’s chair after nearly four decades, adding a significant milestone to the state’s parliamentary history.