Veteran Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan was on Friday elected Speaker of the 16th Kerala Legislative Assembly. Radhakrishnan, 76, is an eight-time MLA and the senior-most Congress legislator in the current Assembly.Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan (centre) being congratulated by Kerala chief minister VD Satheesan. (HT Photo)In the election to the Speaker’s post, Radhakrishnan secured 101 votes, while CPI(M) leader AC Moideen received 35 and BJP MLA BB Gopakumar got three votes. The Congress-led United Democratic Front’s numerical strength of 102 in the 140-member House had made Radhakrishnan’s election a foregone conclusion. Pro tem Speaker G Sudhakaran, who presided over the proceedings, did not vote.Following his election, Radhakrishnan was escorted to the Speaker’s chair by chief minister VD Satheesan and leader of opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, in keeping with Assembly tradition.Satheesan praised Radhakrishnan’s political and legislative career spanning more than three decades and said the veteran leader was well-suited for the Assembly’s top constitutional post.“From 1991 to 2011, he represented Adoor Assembly constituency, and from 2011 to the present following delimitation, he has been elected from Kottayam constituency continuously. He served as a model for many of us on how to function as an effective and responsible MLA in a constituency. He would often travel to his constituency from the state capital on most days to participate in events and functions there. So both inside and outside the Assembly, he has been inspirational for us,” the chief minister said.Vijayan expressed hope that the new Speaker would provide equal opportunity to the opposition to present its views in the House.“Past predecessors in the post have argued that the Speaker must show self-restraint in not turning into an umpire appointed by the batting side. We strongly believe that the newly-appointed Speaker would not need to be reminded of the democratic ethos and ideals attached to the post,” Vijayan said.In the recent Assembly elections, Radhakrishnan retained the Kottayam constituency by defeating CPI(M)’s K Anilkumar by 35,986 votes. It was his fourth consecutive victory from the seat.Before Kottayam, he represented the Adoor constituency in Pathanamthitta district four times before it was reserved for the Scheduled Caste community.Radhakrishnan has previously served as a minister in United Democratic Front governments from 2004 to 2006 and again from 2011 to 2016, handling portfolios including home, vigilance, revenue, forest and health.