TDP seeks support for no-confidence motion against BJP, receives lukewarm response

Ahead of the monsoon session of the Parliament, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is meeting opposition parties to gather support to move a no-confidence motion against their former ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The delegates are seeking the support of both BJP allies and Congress allies but have so far received a lukewarm response.

 

The monsoon session begins on July 18 and  ends on August 10.

 

The delegates have so far managed to meet leaders of six parties the Telugu Rashtra Samithi (TRS), the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), the Communist Party of India, the CPI(Marxist) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The Hindu on Tuesday reported that the delegates did not receive outright support for the motion but were assured support for the implementation of the provisions of the Reorganisation Act, 2014 and the Special Category Status (SCS).

 

The team comprising of CM Ramesh, TG Venkatesh and M Murali Mohan had met DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi in Chennai on Monday and handed over the letter written by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Chandrababu Naidu. The letter was addressed to all major political parties, expect the Congress led by Rahul Gandhi.

 

However, the team did not get an audience from AIADMK leaders. The team from Chennai flew to Bengaluru to meet with Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.

 

The TDP delegations have also been successful in meeting with leaders from All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM), Shiv Sena and the Kerala Congress. When the team sought an appointment with Uddhav Thackeray, they were told that he would meet with them at a later time as he was busy monitoring the relief measures being made for the rain victims in Mumbai. The team now hopes to meet with AIMIM and the Kerala Congress leaders in Delhi before the parliament session begins on Wednesday.

 

Keeping rivalries aside, a TDP delegation led by YS Chowdary met TRS leader K Keshav Rao in Hyderabad but did not get any assurances from the ruling party in Telangana. A team led by Thota Narasimham met NCP president Sharad Pawar, who said he was sympathetic to their cause.

 

Earlier on Monday, leaders of 13 opposition met to devise a strategy to tackle issues that would come up in the monsoon session of the parliament. The meeting was called by Ghulam Nabi Azad, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, who belongs to the INC. This meeting was attended by leaders of major opposition parties including the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, NCP among others. However, TDP was not part of this meeting.

 

The TDP has warned that if the no-confidence motion is not taken up, parliamentary proceedings would be disrupted. The last budget session which saw disruptions almost on a daily basis was the least productive in the past 18 years. According to PRS data, on average Lok Sabha worked for 21% of its scheduled time, while Rajya Sabha functioned for 27% of its scheduled time during the budget session.

 

The monsoon session would be the last before the Assembly Polls begin in three states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh later this year.