GUWAHATI, May 14 � The Opposition parties have not only suffered a humiliating defeat but it will hurt them all the more as the new house session in Assam will begin without a Opposition leader, reports PTI.
With 21 being the minimum required strength required for a single party in the 126-member house, no Opposition party has got the number, including the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP).
And it is ironical that the Opposition leader of the outgoing house is AGP leader and two-time former Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.
�Yes the new house will have to begin without an Opposition leader and no seat will be alloted for the Opposition leader,� State Assembly sources said.
Commenting on the issue, state Health minister and government spokesman Himanta Biswa Sarma said it will become an added responsibility for the new government to discuss important matters in the house with virtually no Opposition.
�We will ensure that the government does not come for criticism for working on its own without any kind of Opposition inside the Assembly,� he said.
The Opposition has put up a poor show in this Assembly election with the AGP managing to win only ten seats and the BJP getting five.
The minority dominated AIUDF is the single largest party after the Congress winning 18 seats. � PTI
