07-21-2008, 10:24 PM
<b>SPARKS FLY IN LOK SABHA BETWEEN PM AND ADVANI</b>
By GLOBEGATHER.COM NATIONAL NEWS, NEW DELHI NEWS BUREAU, 21 JULY 2008
Sparks flew in the Lok Sabha between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and L K Advani on 21 July as the countdown for the trust vote entered a tense, decisive lap amid indications that the UPA government may be bailed out through abstentions by the Trinamool Congress and possibly 10 others from the NDA.
The body language of the UPA in a packed Lok Sabha, which has an effective strength of 541, appeared confident and combative as External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee claimed that the Congress-led alliance has the support of 276 MPs, clearly crossing the majority mark.
Moving a one-line motion that "this House expresses its confidence in the Council of Ministers", the 75-year-old Prime Minister said "every single decision" taken by his government in the last four years was in the "best interests of our people and our country."
In a frontal attack on Singh, Advani, the Leader of the Opposition, said the prime minister was "singularly" responsible for the current political crisis and held that the Indo-US nuclear deal has become an agreement between two individuals, making India "subservient" and a "junior partner."
"UPA is like a patient in the ICU room. The first question everyone asks is whether he(patient) is going to survive or not," Advani said opposing the confidence motion.
Advani's comments that Singh had opposed Pokhran-2 nuclear tests in 1998 drew a sharp response from the prime minister who said he had spoken only about opposition to sanctions that followed the explosions and how the country should be prepared to face the challenges.
TC chief Mamata Banerjee made it clear she would abstain from tomorrow's voting. There was intense speculation that around 10 MPs from BJP, Shiv Sena, JD(U) and BJD may abstain.
By GLOBEGATHER.COM NATIONAL NEWS, NEW DELHI NEWS BUREAU, 21 JULY 2008
Sparks flew in the Lok Sabha between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and L K Advani on 21 July as the countdown for the trust vote entered a tense, decisive lap amid indications that the UPA government may be bailed out through abstentions by the Trinamool Congress and possibly 10 others from the NDA.
The body language of the UPA in a packed Lok Sabha, which has an effective strength of 541, appeared confident and combative as External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee claimed that the Congress-led alliance has the support of 276 MPs, clearly crossing the majority mark.
Moving a one-line motion that "this House expresses its confidence in the Council of Ministers", the 75-year-old Prime Minister said "every single decision" taken by his government in the last four years was in the "best interests of our people and our country."
In a frontal attack on Singh, Advani, the Leader of the Opposition, said the prime minister was "singularly" responsible for the current political crisis and held that the Indo-US nuclear deal has become an agreement between two individuals, making India "subservient" and a "junior partner."
"UPA is like a patient in the ICU room. The first question everyone asks is whether he(patient) is going to survive or not," Advani said opposing the confidence motion.
Advani's comments that Singh had opposed Pokhran-2 nuclear tests in 1998 drew a sharp response from the prime minister who said he had spoken only about opposition to sanctions that followed the explosions and how the country should be prepared to face the challenges.
TC chief Mamata Banerjee made it clear she would abstain from tomorrow's voting. There was intense speculation that around 10 MPs from BJP, Shiv Sena, JD(U) and BJD may abstain.