Shanimol Usman elected deputy speaker of Kerala assembly; gets 99 votes 

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress' Shanimol Usman was elected as the deputy speaker of the Kerala Assembly. She got 99 votes. She defeated CPI's Mohammed Muhsin by 34 votes. Four including BJP MLAs abstained from voting. Voting was at 9 am today. It was certain that Shanimol Usman would win as the UDF has 101 seats, including independents, excluding the Speaker.

Meantime, the discussion on the motion of thanks on the Governor's policy speech will begin in the Assembly today. The Assembly will pay tributes to late former Union Minister K P Unnikrishnan, former MP K P Dhanapalan and former Minister T U Kuruvila. The opposition's first adjournment motion will also reach the House today.

There will be a discussion tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Question and Answer Hours has been skipped on these days. Chief Minister V D Satheesan will present the first budget of the UDF government on Jun 19. The discussion on the budget will be held on the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th. Later, after a break, the assembly will convene on June 29. The discussion on the demands for grants will be held on June 29 and 30. The House will adjourn on July 1 after completing the discussion on the money appropriation bill.