The Shiv Sena said it will vote in favour of the BJP-led government during the opposition-sponsored no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha on Friday, while Tamil Nadu chief minister K Palaniswami hinted his party AIADMK might not back the motion, saying it was moved by the TDP over an issue concerning Andhra Pradesh.
The Shiv Sena has issued a whip for its MPs, directing them to support the government, according to news agency ANI. According to reports, Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah on Thursday called Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, seeking his party's support in the voting .
The motion will be the first since the BJP-led NDA government came to power four years ago. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's decision to accept the motion moved by former BJP ally TDP and others came on the first day of the Monsoon session.
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Andhra Pradesh chief minister and TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu had sought the support of other parties for the motion, citing the NDA government's "non-fulfilment of the promise" to grant special status to his state.
Earlier, Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday said his party will disclose its stand on the floor of the House. "A decision has been taken. We will let it be known inside the House," he said.
No party had backed Tamil Nadu on the Cauvery issue when AIADMK lawmakers had stalled Lok Sabha for nearly three weeks seeking the constitution of the Cauvery Management Board and the Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee, he said.
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"You should understand. They (TDP) have moved the no-confidence motion for a problem concerning Andhra Pradesh. When AIADMK MPs from Tamil Nadu stalled Parliament (during the previous session), who did voice (support) for us, who came forward to solve the problems of Cauvery delta farmers," Palaniswami asked.
"Which state came forward. No state did," he told reporters in Salem in response to a query whether the AIADMK will support the motion.
The AIADMK has 37 MPs in Lok Sabha, making it the third-largest party after the ruling BJP and opposition Congress.
The BJP and PMK have one MP each from Tamil Nadu, which has a total of 39 parliamentary constituencies.
Naveen Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has issued a whip directing its MPs to be present in the Lok Sabha tomorrow. The party has 20 MPs in the lower house.
The ruling BJP, however, on Thursday expressed confidence it would be able to defeat the Opposition-sponsored no-confidence motion as it has a majority in the Lok Sabha, and hoped that it would also manage support from some opposition parties.
"The numbers are very clear. The BJP by itself has a majority in the lower house. We have nearly 314 members within the NDA and there are many other parties which are likely to oppose this no-confidence motion - because this is completely pointless," BJP national spokesperson G V L Narasimha Rao told reporters outside Parliament.
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"We have the numbers and we have the moral fibre to fight this negative opposition, which is only trying to put the country on the path of negativity," he added.
The no-confidence motion would be taken up in the lower house tomorrow for debate and voting.
(Agencies)
