While Rahul Gandhi will lead the charge for Congress party in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will respond from the saffron party’s side.
Fifteen years after it faced a no-confidence motion in Parliament, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government is debating the motion in Lok Sabha today. While the BJP with its majority is expected to easily defeat the motion, the ruling party is nonetheless looking at this as an opportunity to showcase its achievements ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The Opposition, meanwhile, is likely to attack the government on a range of issues, including farm distress, slow economic growth and incidents of mob lynching.
Here is all you need to know about the no-confidence motion debate underway in Lok Sabha currently
1 The no-trust vote was moved by Telugu Desam Party Srinivas Kesineni, demanding a debate on a special package for Andhra Pradesh. The motion was accepted by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Wednesday – the ? day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament
2 Expressing confidence in the Opposition, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi told reporters “Who says we don’t have the numbers?”. Taking a jibe against her Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar Thursday said “Sonia ji’s maths is weak. They had calculated similarly in 1996. We know what happened then. Their calculation is wrong yet again. The Modi govt holds a majority both inside and outside Parliament. ”
3. Ahead of the debate in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged his parliamentarian colleagues would ensure a constructive and smooth debate. “Today is an important day in our Parliamentary democracy. I am sure my fellow MP colleagues will rise to the occasion and ensure a constructive, comprehensive and disruption-free debate. We owe this to the people & the makers of our Constitution. India will be watching us closely.” he wrote on Twitter.
4. While Rahul Gandhi will lead the charge for Congress party in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will respond from the saffron party’s side. Home Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to be an intervener during the debate.
5. In a setback to the Opposition, Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal, party leaders walked out of Lok Sabha right before the debate began, adding that the discussion was “fruitless” for the people of Odisha.BJD’s 19 MPs in Lok Sabha make it the fifth largest party in the Lower House. The party’s walkout lowers the number of votes, required by the government to defeat the motion.
LIVE Updates: No-confidence motion debate in Lok Sabha today
6. BJP’s ally, Shiv Sena, meanwhile will abstain from participating in the debate. The party, which held a party meeting this morning in the Parliament complex, did not attend today’s session. Sena has 19 MPs in the Lok Sabha.
7. Suspense still remains over which way the regional outfits, AIADMK and the TRS – with 37 and 11 MPs respectively – will go during the motion. According to sources, they are likely to follow BJD and not participate in the voting process.
8. Opening the debate, TDP MP Jayadev Galla said, “The saga of Andhra Pradesh during this Modi-Shah regime is a saga of empty promises.” Hitting out at the prime minister for ignoring Andhra Pradesh, Galla said, “You (PM) are singing a different tune which people of Andhra Pradesh are keenly observing and they would give you a befitting reply in the upcoming polls.”
9. The Leader of Opposition, Malikarjun Kharge, requested Speaker Mahajan to not restrict the debate by time limits. The party has been allotted 38 minutes for the debate. “Is this time sufficient for us to highlight issues of 130 crore Indians and the faults of this government? Each party should get 30 minutes, but 38 minutes have been allotted to the largest Opposition party. The no-confidence motion can’t be treated like Question Hour,” said Kharge.
10. The debate will continue throughout the day and the voting will take place at 6 pm today.