New Delhi, Jul 6 (DHNS) : Former Union Minister Kamal Nath on Saturday hinted that the Congress may approach the Court seeking a “legal remedy” if Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan denies the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) post to his party.
The Lok Sabha Speaker will be “flavoured” by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) stand on the issue. Hence, Congress would be right in seeking a “legal remedy”, he said.
With the party upping its ante on the issue ahead of upcoming Budget Session, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh also made a strong pitch for bringing amendments to the existing law to end the tussle.
“To hold the LoP position, 55 seats are required so that the law needs to be amended,” Singh said. The BJP, however, did not seem to be in the mood of relenting to the pressure mounted by the Congress.
“Absence of LoP does not affect the functioning of the opposition parties. As far as the post is concerned, certain rules and guidelines are before us. The Speaker has to take a call,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu said.
He also reminded the Congress that it did not give the LoP post to the Opposition during its regime in past. “The Congress did not give the LoP post during the reign of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi,” Naidu recalled. On Thursday, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge called on Lok Sabha Speaker to seek the LoP post to the UPA on the ground that it was the largest “pre-poll” combination.
Naidu, however, said neither any party had made a “formal claim” before the Speaker.