New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi has become the third member of the Gandhi family to be appointed as Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha. Both his parents, Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi have held the post earlier.
With this, the Congress has reclaimed the Leader of the Opposition post for itself.
His mother, Sonia Gandhi, was the Leader of the Opposition in the 10th Lok Sabha and held the office from October 1999 till February 2004. His late father, Rajiv Gandhi held the office from December 1989 till December 1990, before his assassination in May 1991.
Addressing the media, party MP KC Venugopal Venugopal said that Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi wrote to Pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab and informed him Rahul Gandhi will be the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha.
On June 9, the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party’s top decision-making body, passed a resolution to appoint Rahul Gandhi as the Lead of the Opposition in Lok Sabha. After the CWC meeting, Rahul Gandhi had said he needed some time to think about it before making a decision.
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi took oath as the Member of Parliament in Lok Sabha. Holding a copy of the Constitution, Rahul Gandhi said “Jai Hind, Jai Samvidhan” after taking oath.
The Congress almost doubled its tally in the 2024 Lok Sabha election to 99 seats from 52 in 2019. In the 2014 elections, the party managed to win just 44 seats. Despite being the second-largest party in Parliament after the BJP in 2014 and 2019, the Congress fell short of the criteria which would place it as the principal opposition party in the house.
Notably, a party which has less than 10 per cent of the seats cannot claim the post of Leader of the Opposition in the Lower House.
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