Parliament & State legislatures

Leader of the Opposition (LoP) is the leader of the numerically biggest party in opposition to the government and recognised as such by the Speaker/Chairman of each house. It is a statutory post defined under the Salaries and Allowances of Leader of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977. Under Mavalankar’s rule, the single largest opposition party must have at least 10% of the House’s total strength in order for its leader to be designated as the Leader of Opposition.
The LoP plays a key role for the effective functioning of democracy in India in the following ways:

• Ensuring accountability of the government: The Leader of the Opposition (LoP) takes the lead in questioning the government and holding it accountable through mechanisms like debate and discussions, question hour, passing motions, etc.
  • When the LoP becomes the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, he/she examines the budgetary appropriations and accounts of the government and reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, thus ensuring financial accountability of the government.
• Role in key appointments: Consultation of the Leader of the Opposition is required at the time of important appointments like the CVC, Lokpal, CIC, etc. in order to bring bipartisanship and neutrality to these appointments.
• Constructive criticism: The Leader of the Opposition leads the opposition to provide effective, practical, and constructive criticism of the policies of the government.
• Public opinion: The LoP plays a key role in shaping public opinion by raising the issues in the policies of the government.
• Ensuring unity of the opposition parties: The LoP plays an important role in bringing cohesiveness and effectiveness to the opposition’s functioning with regard to the policies framed and legislative work in the Parliament.
• Public welfare: The LoP upholds the interests of the people of the country and highlights their issues through debates in the Parliament. For example, protests against fuel price hikes or inflation, etc.
• Protecting rights of the minorities: Since the government is formed by a party receiving majority votes in a democracy, the LoP has an important role in ensuring that the rights of minorities are not curtailed by the majority government.

Thus, the ruling government should provide adequate voice to the LoP for effective functioning of a democracy. At the same time, political opposition should not translate into hostility, as it is not a sign of a healthy democracy. The diversity of opinion in the Parliament enriches both polity and society at large. A strong parliamentary democracy demands strengthening the opposition, as a strong, vibrant and active opposition helps to improve governance and aids the functioning of the government.