New Delhi, Dec 1 (IANS) Gearing up to face a likely vote on an adjournment motion on foreign equity in retail, the government Thursday girded up to amass the required numbers by talking to recalcitrant allies to get them on board, as the Congress said there would be no roll back of the government decision.
There were indications the government might allow the opposition’s adjournment move to ensure that the two houses of parliament function from next week for the remainder of the winter session. The parliament was adjourned without transacting any business for the eighth successive day Thursday due to opposition protests over several issues, including FDI in retail.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went more than half way to meet United Progressive Alliance constituents to convince them about Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail. He seemed to have succeeded in arriving at an arrangement acceptable to parties like the Trinamool Congress which is vehemently opposed to the move.
Singh met the leaders of his alliance partner parties National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah, Trinamool Congress’ Sudip Bandyopadhyay, DMK’s T.R. Baalu, Muslim League Kerala State Committee’s (MLKSC) E. Ahamed at his residence, and he was assisted in the talks by Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, informed sources said.
While most of the allies appear to be backing the government on the issue, the Trinamool Congress with 18 MPs is still unconvinced on the matter.
However, the Trinamool may abstain from voting on the adjournment motion in parliament so that it’s neither seen to be on the side of the Left parties or the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nor to be backing the government decision. The DMK with 18 MPs and the MLKSC with two MPs may vote along with the government.
The government is also working on its outside supporters, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) with 21 MPs and Samajwadi Party with 22 MPs, to see that they abstain from voting. This would bring down the halfway mark of 272 in the 543-member Lok Sabha, helping the government defeat the adjournment motion comfortably even without the Trinamool Congress.
The government will also field Anand Sharma to talk to Congress MPs on Friday to dispel any doubts that they may have on the cabinet decision.
Behind all these efforts, the government’s parliament floor managers were working overtime to ensure that the Congress has its full strength of 207.
A vote on an adjournment motion in parliament is not a vote of no-confidence in the government and hence the government is not unnecessarily hassled, but it wants to avoid an embarrassment at a time when its stock is low on the corruption and inflation front.
The BJP, which has been in the forefront of disruption of parliament on the issue, will in all likelihood move the adjournment motion. It is unwilling to water down the content and has ignored the government’s feelers to do so. The Left parties and several other non-UPA and non-National Democratic Alliance (NDA) parties may go with the motion.
The Congress said ‘there was no question of roll back’ of the government decision to allow 51 percent foreign equity in multi-brand retail.
Party spokesperson Raashid Alvi said the UPA allies were on board on the issue.
