President Pranab Mukherjee today directed officials to ensure special seating arrangements for Leaders of Opposition in Parliament during functions at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The direction from Mukherjee came after top BJP leaders, who had attended an 'At Home' function on August 15, were reportedly upset over the seating arrangements in Rashtrapati Bhavan.

"The President today directed for special seating arrangements for Leaders of Opposition in Parliament on important functions held at Rashtrapati Bhavan," President's Press Secretary Venu Rajamony said. Mukherjee has yesterday telephoned BJP leaders L K Advani, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj after reports suggested that they were upset about the seating arrangements on the occasion of Independence Day.

The BJP leaders, who were seen at the 'At Home' function after a gap of five years, were in an enclosure along with Cabinet ministers, diplomats and judges besides senior bureaucrats, away from the VVIP enclosure.