As Rahul Gandhi begins LoP innings, what allowances and privileges is he entitled to?

Rahul Gandhi on Monday gave his debut speech as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, targeting the Narendra Modi government for 100 minutes. The speech elicited a strong response from the Treasury Benches led by PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

With no party having the strength to claim the LoP status in the last 10 years, Gandhi is the first Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha since 2014 and has claimed that he will represent all Opposition parties and not just the Congress on the floor of the House. Before Gandhi, some of the tallest leaders in Indian political history held the post, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sonia Gandhi, L K Advani, and Sharad Pawar.

The position of the LoP was officially described in The Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977. The Act describes the LoP as a “member of the Council of States or the House of the People, as the case may be, who is, for the time being, the Leader in that House of the party in opposition to the Government having the greatest numerical strength and recognised as such by the Chairman of the Council of States or the Speaker of the House of the People”.

The LoP in the Lok Sabha enjoys certain privileges that are spelt out in the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977. The LoP is entitled to receive a monthly salary and daily allowances at the rates specified in “Section 3 of the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954, with respect to Members of Parliament”, including a monthly sumptuary allowance of Rs 2,000. Like MPs, the LoP also receives a constituency allowance specified in Section 8 of the Act.

Rahul will be entitled to receive travel allowance for