Leader of the Opposition in
Rajya Sabha
Rājya Sabhā ke Vipakṣa ke Netā
Emblem of India
Incumbent
Mallikarjun Kharge
since 17 December 2022
ResidenceNew Delhi
AppointerWhile parliamentary chairperson of the largest political party in the Rajya Sabha that is not in government
Term length5 years
Inaugural holderShyam Nandan Prasad Mishra (1969–1971)
Salary₹330,000 (US$4,100)
(excl. allowances) per month
Websiterajyasabha.nic.in

The Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha (IAST: Rājya Sabhā ke Vipakṣa ke Netā) is an elected Member of Rajya Sabha who leads the official opposition in the Upper House of the Parliament of India. The Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha is the parliamentary chairperson of the largest political party in the Rajya Sabha that is not in government.

History

In the Rajya Sabha until 1969, the title of opposition leader only existed de facto and had no formal recognition, status or privilege. Later, the leader of the opposition was given official recognition and their salary and allowances was extended by the Act, 1977. Since then, the leader in the Rajya Sabha should satisfy three conditions, namely,

  1. he should be a member of the House
  2. of the party in opposition to the Government having the greatest numerical strength and
  3. be recognised by the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha

In December 1969, the Congress Party (O) was recognised as the main opposition party in the parliament while its leader, Shyam Nandan Mishra plays the role of opposition leader. M. S. Gurupadaswamy was later elected the leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha after Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra completed his tenure. However, Gurupadaswamy's appointment was declared with no formal announcement.

Role and responsibilities

The Leader of Opposition (LoP) looks at government policies formulated for the rights of minorities and demands debate and criticises the government if ruling party tries to avoid debates on such policy. LoP also debates on the country's foreign relations and trade when it poses security threats on the national security.[1][2]

Privileges and salary

Opposition leaders plays a significant role in government policies and their implementation by the ruling party. Sometimes, opposition leaders questions government about the country's national security and development.[3] After the constitution of India created a separate law on 1 November 1977 for opposition leaders, the salary was extended.[4]

List of leaders of the opposition in Rajya Sabha

Following members have been the leaders of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha.

No. Portrait Name
(born – died)
Constituency		 Term of office Political party Government Leader of House Chairman
(Tenure)
No official opposition (13 May 1952 – 17 December 1969)
1 Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra
(1920–2004)
MP for Bihar		 18 December
1969		 11 March
1971		 1 year, 83 days Indian National Congress (O) Indira I Kodardas Kalidas Shah Gopal Swarup Pathak
(1969–1974)
2 M. S. Gurupadaswamy
(1924–2011)
MP for Uttar Pradesh		 24 March
1971		 2 April
1972		 1 year, 9 days Indira II Uma Shankar Dikshit
No official opposition (2 April 1972 – 30 March 1977)
3 Kamalapati Tripathi
(1905–1990)
MP for Uttar Pradesh		 30 March
1977		 15 February
1978		 322 days Indian National Congress Desai L. K. Advani B. D. Jatti
(1974–1979)
4 Bhola Paswan Shastri
(1914–1990)
MP for Bihar		 24 February
1978		 23 March
1978		 27 days
(3) Kamalapati Tripathi
(1905–1990)
MP for Uttar Pradesh		 23 March
1978		 8 January
1980		 1 year, 291 days
Indian National Congress (Urs) Charan K. C. Pant Mohammad Hidayatullah
(1979–1984)
5 L. K. Advani
(born 1927)
MP for Gujarat		 21 January
1980		 7 April
1980		 77 days Janata Party Indira III Pranab Mukherjee
No official opposition (7 April 1980 – 18 December 1989)
6 P. Shiv Shankar
(1929–2017)
MP for Gujarat		 18 December
1989		 2 January
1991		 1 year, 15 days Indian National Congress V. P. Singh M. S. Gurupadaswamy Shankar Dayal Sharma
(1987–1992)
Chandra Shekhar Yashwant Sinha
(2) M. S. Gurupadaswamy
(1924–2011)
MP for Karnataka		 28 June
1991		 21 July
1991		 23 days Janata Dal Rao Vacant
7 S. Jaipal Reddy
(1942–2019)
MP for Andhra Pradesh		 22 July
1991		 29 June
1992		 343 days Shankarrao Chavan
8 Sikander Bakht
(1918–2004)
MP for Madhya Pradesh		 7 July
1992		 16 May
1996		 3 years, 314 days Bharatiya Janata Party
K. R. Narayanan
(1992–1997)
9 Shankarrao Chavan
(1920–2004)
MP for Maharashtra		 23 May
1996		 1 June
1996		 9 days Indian National Congress Vajpayee I Sikander Bakht
(8) Sikander Bakht
(1918–2004)
MP for Madhya Pradesh		 1 June
1996		 19 March
1998		 1 year, 291 days Bharatiya Janata Party Deve Gowda Inder Kumar Gujral
H. D. Deve Gowda
Gujral Inder Kumar Gujral
Krishan Kant
(1997–2002)
10 Manmohan Singh
(born 1932)
MP for Assam		 19 March
1998		 22 May
2004		 6 years, 64 days Indian National Congress Vajpayee II Sikander Bakht
Vajpayee III Jaswant Singh
Bhairon Singh Shekhawat
(2002–2007)
11 Jaswant Singh
(1938–2020)
MP for Rajasthan		 3 June
2004		 16 May
2009		 4 years, 347 days Bharatiya Janata Party Manmohan I Manmohan Singh
Mohammad Hamid Ansari
(2007–2017)
12 Arun Jaitley
(1952–2019)
MP for Gujarat		 3 June
2009		 26 May
2014		 4 years, 357 days Manmohan II
13 Ghulam Nabi Azad
(born 1949)
MP for Jammu and Kashmir		 8 June
2014		 10 February
2015		 6 years, 252 days Indian National Congress Modi I Arun Jaitley
23 February
2015		 15 February
2021
M. Venkaiah Naidu
(2017–2022)
Modi II Thawar Chand Gehlot
14 Mallikarjun Kharge
(born 1942)
MP for Karnataka		 16 February
2021		 Incumbent 2 years, 330 days
Piyush Goyal
Jagdeep Dhankhar
(2022–present)

List of deputy leaders of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha

No. Portrait Name
(born – died)
Constituency		 Term of office Political party Leader of Opposition
1 S. S. Ahluwalia
(born 1951)
MP for Jharkhand		 3 June
2009		 2 April
2012		 2 years, 304 days Bharatiya Janata Party Arun Jaitley
2 Ravi Shankar Prasad
(born 1954)
MP for Bihar		 20 July
2012		 26 May
2014		 1 year, 310 days
3 Anand Sharma
(born 1953)
MP for Himachal Pradesh		 8 June
2014		 2 April
2022		 7 years, 298 days Indian National Congress Ghulam Nabi Azad
Mallikarjun Kharge
Interim P. Chidambaram
(born 1945)
MP for Maharashtra (till Jun'22)
MP for Tamil Nadu (from Jun'22)		 3 April
2022		 13 March
2023		 344 days
4 Pramod Tiwari
(born 1952)
MP for Rajasthan		 13 March
2023		 Incumbent 305 days

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Leader of Opposition: His role and responsibilities – India News". Latest News India. 17 June 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
  2. ↑ "Rajya Sabha – Role of The Leader of The House, Leader of the Opposition and Whips Brief History". rajyasabha.nic.in.
  3. ↑ Kumar, Sanjay. "Why India Needs an Opposition Leader". thediplomat.com.
  4. ↑ Salary and other suitable facilities are extended to them through a separate legislation brought into force on 1 November 1977

Further reading

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