No Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly After 60 Years

Mumbai: For the first time in six decades, the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly will convene without a Leader of Opposition (LoP), as no opposition party has secured the required number of seats to claim the post. This development delivers a significant blow to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which suffered a severe drubbing in the assembly elections held on November 20.

The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance emerged victorious in a landslide, with the BJP winning 132 seats, Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde securing 57, and the NCP faction headed by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar bagging 41 seats. The alliance collectively dominated the 288-member assembly.

In stark contrast, the MVA coalition was left reeling from major losses. The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) managed only 20 seats, Congress won 16, and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction secured just 10 seats.

According to legislative rules, a party must hold at least 10% of the total assembly seats—28 in this case—to qualify for the LoP post. However, none of the opposition parties met this threshold.

This unprecedented situation highlights the overwhelming dominance of the BJP-led alliance while leaving the opposition bloc without a unified voice in the legislative assembly.​