New Delhi. Citing provisions of the law as well as the Constitution, constitutional expert and former Lok Sabha secretary general PDT Acharya on Friday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will have to resign from any of the two seats he won in the recently held Lok Sabha elections within one to two weeks. Acharya told PTI that any candidate who wins two seats has to vacate one seat within 14 days of the election results.
Rahul Gandhi can send his resignation to the current Speaker Om Birla even after the dissolution of the 17th Lok Sabha as he will remain in office until a temporary Speaker is appointed for the 18th Lok Sabha. The 17th Lok Sabha was dissolved on 5 June after President Draupadi Murmu approved the Union Cabinet’s recommendation to dissolve the House to form a new Lok Sabha.
Acharya said that in case of vacancy of the posts of Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker, the members can send their resignation to the Election Commission. If a member fails to resign from one of the two seats, he risks losing both the seats. Congress has won 99 seats in the new Lok Sabha. Rahul Gandhi has won from Wayanad in Kerala and Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh.