The Andhra Pradesh High Court recently set a four-week timeline for a detailed hearing on YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) president and Pulivendula MLA, Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s writ petition. This petition contests the Andhra Pradesh Legislature’s alleged refusal to grant him Leader of the Opposition (LoP) status in the Assembly. The court has also directed the respondents to submit their counters.
Jagan Mohan Reddy, the former Chief Minister, has argued that the Speaker’s ruling on February 5, 2025, which declined to recognize him as the LoP, was illegal. The ruling cited that a party lacking a minimum strength of 18 members in the 175-member Legislative Assembly cannot be formally recognized as the Leader of Opposition, and granting such status purely based on discretion would be improper.
Furthermore, Jagan Mohan Reddy highlighted that his oath-taking ceremony occurred after the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers had already been sworn in. He viewed this as a departure from traditional parliamentary practice, suggesting it created an impression that the decision to withhold his LoP status was premeditated to suppress the voice of the YSRCP, which secured only 11 Assembly constituencies in the 2024 general elections.
He emphasized that the Speaker’s controversial ruling was made while his earlier petition on the same issue (filed on July 23, 2024) was still awaiting resolution in the High Court. The petition’s core request is for him to be formally designated as the Leader of the Opposition, either in accordance with Section 12-B of The A.P. Payment Of Salaries And Pension And Removal Of Disqualifications Act, 1953, or alternatively, for the High Court to declare him as such in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.