The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a Public Interest Litigation seeking Leader of Opposition status for the Congress in Lok Sabha. Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge is currently the leader of Congress Parliamentary party.
While dismissing the plea, the court said the aggrieved party, i.e the Congress, is not in the court and it they want the status, they can do it themselves as they have competent lawyers to do so.
The BJP after coming to power had refused the LoP status to Congress stating that the party did not have requisite number of MPs in the Lok Sabha. Congress is the second largest group in the Lok Sabha with 44 seats after BJP's 282 and has been insisting that it should be given the status of leader of opposition.
Earlier in 2014, the Congress demand for being given the status of LoP to its House chief Mallikarjun Kharge in Lok Sabha was rejected by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. The Speaker had taken the opinion of Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi who had said the Congress did not have numbers so its floor leader could not be granted the status.
The Speaker had conveyed to the Congress she was not in a position to give the leader the status because the party fell short of the minimum 55 seats required for staking claim to the post.
Mahajan is said to have cited precedents in 1980 and 1984 when there was no leader of opposition.
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