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| With 3 BJP members, will Delhi LA have a Leader of Opposition ? | | | Jammu, Feb 13 : The voters of Delhi have given a crystal clear opinion and the two year old Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has captured 95% of the seats in 70 member Delhi assembly. In the newly elected legislature there will be only 3 non Aam Aadmi Parti (AAP) MLA's. All the non AAP MLA's belong to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which incidentally is the majority party in the Lok Sabha in Parliament. Upon the constitution and swearing in of all MLAs in the Delhi Assembly (Vidhan Sabha), a question that has arisen for the second time in less than 12 months is Who will be the Leader of Opposition (LoP) ?Pertinently this question arose last year in May after the Indian National Congress (INC) became single largest party in opposition in the Lok Sabha with only 44 seats. Various political commentators had begun commenting on this issue in response to queries raised by activists , media persons and cross section of society about the fate of various selection committees that shortlist candidates for appointments to various statutory authorities such as the Director, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) , the Chairperson and Members of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) , the Chairperson and Members of the Lokpal and the members of the Central Information Commission (CIC) etc .
The Lok Sabha Speaker had eventually refused to accept the claim of the leader of the INC's representative group in the Lok Sabha to the Leader of Opposition (LoP) ." In my humble opinion, incorrectly invoking an obsolete ruling from the pre-independence era to hold that unless an opposition party had 10% of the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha it will not be entitled to claim the LoP's post.
Even the Attorney General of India (AGI) is said to have supported this position completely ignoring the history of the debates in the same House on the issue of the LoP in 1977. I am still waiting for a reply from the Lok Sabha Secretariat to my RTI application seeking a copy of the AGI's opinion. Now history has come a full circle and it is the turn of the BJP to stake a claim to the LOP's post in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha with its miniscule representation in the House. Will it or will it not stake its claim to the LoP's post is the next big question," says Venkatesh Nayak a constitutional expert working with Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) an International NGO based in New Delhi
What do the Rules of Procedure say about the LoP in the Delhi Assembly ?
Strangely, the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Delhi assembly (Vidhan Sabha) throw no light on the manner of appointment of the LoP. The web-edition of these Rules accessible on the Delhi assembly website are silent on the criterion for recognition of the Leader of Opposition (LoP). Nor is any ruling of the Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha on this issue displayed on this website."
The next big, billion rupee question is whether the BJP will let go of its fondness for the 10% quota rule while staking its claim for the LoP's post ? Of course in the absence of clear cut Rules, it is the Speaker's call. When I commented on the issue of the LoP in the Lok Sabha last year, many readers cautioned me against being identified with the INC that was a claimant of this post. I had infact made it clear in those emails that the issue must not be decided on the basis of the ideological leanings of any person including the Speaker. Instead the issue must be decided with reference to the law on the LoP which is crystal clear notwithstanding the Lok Sabha Speaker's decision. I respect her authority to make such a decision but do not feel compelled to agree with it " Venkatesh Nayak further said |
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