Sumitra Mahajan rejects Congress demand for leader of opposition - Livemint

Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan. Photo: AFP

New Delhi: Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Tuesday formally rejected the Congress party’s demand for the post of leader of the opposition (LoP) in the Lower House of Parliament because the party doesn’t have enough representatives in the Lok Sabha.

“I have gone by rules and tradition,” Mahajan told PTI on her decision not to recognize the Congress leader in the Lok Sabha as LoP. She cited a rule that said a party has to have a minimum of 55 seats in the Lok Sabha for its leader to be given this status. The Congress has 44.

Analysts said that although the speaker is within her rights and correct to deny the Congress party’s demand, the denial could render even more acrimonious the already strained relationship between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the dominant leader of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and the Congress.

That could mean an end to legislative reforms. The NDA has a clear majority in the Lok Sabha but is in a minority in the Rajya Sabha, and has already had to accede to a request orchestrated by the Congress in the Upper House to refer a key insurance reforms Bill to a committee. The ruling NDA was keen to pass the Bill in the first session of Parliament.

Legislation likely to be affected are the Insurance (Amendment) Bill, 2008 (after it comes back from the committee); the 115th Constitutional Amendment Bill for implementation of the goods and service tax; the Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2014; an amendment in the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, and the Apprentices (Amendment) Bill, 2014.

The last two were passed by the Lok Sabha in the recently concluded Parliament session.

The Lok Sabha speaker has cited three main reasons for denying the Congress party the status of LoP in the Lower House. The first is past precedent: in 1980 and 1984, no party was given LoP status in the Lok Sabha. The second reason is the 10% mandate that an opposition party should have to claim the post in the House. The third is the view of the attorney general.

The post of LoP is also important because the appointment of Central Information Commissioner and Central Vigilance Commissioner is done on the recommendation of a three-member committee which includes the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

The leader of the opposition is also involved in selections of the chairperson and members of the Lokpal. It isn’t known whether the NDA will follow the formula it suggested for judicial appointments (“leader of the opposition or leader of the largest opposition party”) in these.

Mahajan conveyed her decision in a letter to Sonia Gandhi , president of the Congress party. Gandhi had earlier written a letter to Mahajan demanding LoP status for Mallikarjun Kharge , who is the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha.

“I will consult with our high command, particularly with the legal cell of the party and only then react. Being recognized as leader of the opposition is one thing and functioning as floor leader is another,” Kharge told reporters. The leader of the opposition in both the Houses of Parliament has the status of a cabinet minister.

“The decision is entirely in accordance with law, in fact the speaker did not have any option in this. The law is very clear. Since 1952 till now, there has not been a single instance where a party with less than 55 members has been allotted the LoP post,” constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap said.

“It is nobody’s personal choice, it is public money and the rule of law.”

Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad formally holds the post of the leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Kashyap said.

PTI contributed to this story.