UPA Govt loses Ajit, Gowda but fight not over

THEIR BIGGEST TEST: Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi work to save Government and reputation.

        

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Keywords: Mayawati, JMM

New Delhi: The UPA Government is struggling to secure numbers to remain in power, hoping that defections and abstentions among parties would help it to win the vote of confidence in Parliament on Tuesday.

Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Ajit Singh dealt the first blow to the Government on Sunday when he announced that his three MPs would not support it during the floor test.

The Centre has decided to rename Lucknow's Amausi airport after his father, former prime minister Charan Singh, but that failed to impress the RLD leader. "The Congress is run by Amar Singh (Samajwadi Party leader). We discussed the issue and our MPs are not in favour of supporting the Congress because the SP is with them," he said.

The Janata Dal (Secular), which has three MPs, followed suit hours later with its leader and former Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy announcing that he would support the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) in voting against the Government.

Kumaraswamy’s father and JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda said the party had collectively decided to vote against the Government. He made the announcement soon after BSP chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati met him and requested his support for the UNPA.

Votes for Congress

The Congress had some reason to cheer with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) finally ending days of suspense and deciding to support the ruling coalition in Tuesday's vote, expected late at night. JMM has five MPs.

JMM leader Shibu Soren, after meeting UPA chief Sonia Gandhi on Sunday morning, announced he would support the Government. In return, Soren will get two ministries—one of cabinet rank and another a minister of state—for his party in the Centre. Soren’s son has been promised the post of deputy chief minister in Jharkhand, his home state.

DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran, estranged grand-nephew of party chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, also announced he would vote for the government. And so did the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, whose sole MP Asaduddin Owaisi said in Hyderabad that he considered the BJP a greater evil than the nuclear deal.

The UPA snared rebel Janata Dal (United) MP Ramswaroop Prasad, who announced that he would vote for the Government in “national interest”.

The National Conference, which has two MPs, refused to make public its decision but sources tell CNN-IBN the party will support the Government.

The Government is wooing seven MPs who have not decided their votes, hoping they would either support it on Tuesday or abstain. Of these seven the lone MP of Trinamool Congress is likely to abstain.