New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has assumed the role of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha. For the past decade, the position of Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha has remained vacant due to the inability of any opposition party to meet the minimum strength requirement needed for the post.
Despite being the second-largest party in the Lok Sabha after the 2014 and 2019 general elections, the Congress was unable to secure the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) position due to holding less than 10 percent of the total seats in the Lower House. For an opposition party to stake a claim for the LoP post in the 543-member Lok Sabha, it requires a minimum of 55 seats.
In 2014, following its loss of majority status, the Congress secured only 44 seats, thereby failing to meet the criteria for the LoP position. At that time, the Congress’s request for the LoP post was declined by then Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. In the 2019 elections, despite increasing its tally to 52 seats, the Congress once again fell short of the required number to qualify for the LoP post in the Lok Sabha.