# Rahul Gandhi to sit after ministers at Red Fort on I-Day 2026-08-10T13:55:34+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Defence secretary RK Singh said on Monday that leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi has been invited to the Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort on August 15 and will be seated immediately after Union Cabinet ministers, as per the Table of Precedence. The clarification comes after Congress criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year over Gandhi's seating in the 'fifth row', calling it a display of 'pettiness' and a disregard for democratic norms. According to the Warrant of Precedence issued by the President's Secretariat, the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha has a rank equivalent to that of a Cabinet minister. The Table of Precedence, which applies to state and ceremonial occasions including national events, is based on constitutional rank and office, not political affiliation. Congress had also objected to Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge being seated in the third row during the Republic Day celebrations earlier this year. ## Coverage - timesofindia.indiatimes.com - indiatoday.in Tags: BJP, Congress, Independence Day, protocol, Rahul Gandhi, Table of Precedence Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/lop-rahul-gandhi-to-sit-after-cabinet-ministers-on-i-day/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/lop-rahul-gandhi-to-sit-after-cabinet-ministers-on-i-day/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.