SC dismisses PIL seeking LoP status to Congress in Lok Sabha

The Supreme Court today dismissed a PIL seeking that the Leader of Opposition status in Lok Sabha be granted to Congress party, saying it cannot decide political issues filed under the garb of Public Interest Litigation.

Refusing to entertain the petition filed by an advocate, a bench headed by Chief Justice R M Lodha said "ruling of Speaker in the House is not amenable to judicial review".

"Under Article 32 we are not sitting here to decide political issues," the bench said, adding, "Ruling given by Speaker in the house is not amenable to judicial review".

The bench, also comprising justices Kurian Joseph and R F Nariman, pulled up the petitioner M L Sharma for filing PIL without doing proper home work.

Sharma submitted that the question of the Leader of the Opposition is to be read with the provision of the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977.

"Section 2 of the 1977 Act defines the LOP of each House as the leader in that House of the party in opposition to the Government having the greatest numerical strength. Therefore a parson who is the leader of the greatest numerical strength is to be declared as a Leader of the Opposition," he submitted.