Rahul Gandhi Is Now 'Shadow PM' Will Lead Opposition Against Modi 3.0 Role, Powers Explained

A functioning democracy is marked by dialogues, discussions and debates. On good days it leads to constructive outcomes, on bad just chaos. Well that's only possible when the oppositions throat power is a match for the governments ability to dismiss them as just noises and the opposition has to have a leader to lead them from the front in the parliament. However, for the last 10 years those numbers were missing on the opposition benches. In fact, the opposition was so weak that for the last 10 years it could not even pick a leader of Opposition. But after June 4th, that stance changed. Although today you can see the Prime Minister walking in door with Rahul Gandhi, soon the newly elected shadow Prime Minister, Rahul Gandhi backed by his shadow cabinet will stand toe to toe with the Prime Minister and his cabinet. Yes, you heard that phrase right? Shadow Prime Minister Rahul Gandhi for the first time will hold the constitutional position of Leader of Opposition, who is also known as a shadow Prime Minister. Given the importance of this role in a democracy, now, the number of stories on his coming of age can only be beaten by stories of his comeuppance. But on June 4th, after 10 years of being battered left, right and center, the man has batted his way to the front of the pack. However, unlike Shashi Tharoor who gave him the Man of the match when the results were announced, others, including us, are in no Sachari because the match has just begun. I am Abhishek Singh and you're watching the mint. In this video, I will tell you all about the powers of the Leader of the Opposition, his responsibilities and a lot more. The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the largest opposition party. The post was not recognized till 1969 when Ram Subhak Singh became the first recognized LOP of the Lok Sabha. But the post received statue recognition to the salary and allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act in 1977. Now, after I explained to you the powers of the Leader of Opposition, it will become clear to you why he's also known as the shadow Prime Minister. As the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Gandhi will be part of key panels like those to select election commissioners and the CBI Director. The constitutional position will also give him an opportunity to call on visiting heads of state to give his perspective on national issues. He will be the voice of the minority. That is, it will be his responsibility as a leader of opposition to represent those in discussions and debates who are not in the ruling party. His job also includes scrutinizing the government policies, presenting alternative policies, ensuring accountability and protecting democratic values. And this critical position was vacant for 10 years. Strain as one key requirement to get the position is the condition to secure at least 110th of the total strength of the Lok Sabha. Since the Lok Sabha has 543 members of political party would need at least 55 members to appoint a Leader of the Opposition, which as you know Congress or for that matter any other party failed to secure in both 2014 when the Congress 144 seats and 52 in 2019. Now, if you're wondering how Rahul Gandhi was chosen to be the Leader of Opposition this time as the Indian National Congress roughly doubled its seat tally from the last general elections, the choice to choose its leader was entirely up to the party. So when the Congress Working Committee passed a resolution urging Rahul Gandhi to accept the position, he said yes. It seems this time Rahul Gandhi wanted to lead from the front instead of being the reluctant politician he's been accused of in the past. As the parliamentary system is based on mutual forbearance, the Leader of the Opposition lets the Prime Minister govern and is in turn permitted to oppose his. Her proactive role in facilitating smooth functioning the business of the House is as important as that of the government. With the Leader of Opposition now in place, we hope debates and discussions can flourish once again in the Parliament. If you like watching this video, please like and share and don't forget to subscribe to the main.