Advani elected leader of opposition

Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani was Sunday formally elected as leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha.

A meeting of the BJP MPs here also discussed probable names for the deputy leader's post, besides the party's strategy for the first session of the house beginning Monday though details were not disclosed.

Party stalwarts Jaswant Singh (Lok Sabha) and M Venkaiah Naidu (Rajya Sabha) proposed Advani's name and he was unanimously elected.

Elected from the Gandhinagar constituency in Gujarat for the fourth time in a row, Advani, 81, was leader of opposition in the previous Lok Sabha too. He has been an MP six times.

The first session of the 15th Lok Sabha begins Monday with the swearing in of new members. The speaker will be elected June 3, and President Pratibha Patil will address a joint session of both houses June 4.