Left gone, numbers game on
The congress is counting on the Samajwadi Party (SP) and a bunch of small parties to pull the government through during the vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha. But there are already indications that such support will not come easy, cheap or early.
Within hours of the Left announcing the pullout, one of these potential kingmakers, the two-MP JD(S), announced it would take a final decision on supporting the government only on the day before the trust vote. Another, the three-MP TRS, wanted the Centre to start the process for carving out a separate Telangana state. And the SP said it had kept its side of the agreement by pledging support to the government; it now expected the government to do its bit.
Congress floor managers on Tuesday spoke about having 236 members on the coalition's side, and getting another 39 from the SP, taking its support past the magic figure of 272. But it was clear that the Congress could not take anyone for granted. The challenge will be to muster the numbers and keep its flock together in a situation where smaller parties increasingly figure they could be the only ones standing between the government staying or going.
The first sign of the difficulty of the task came from former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda. Even as Congress managers counted the JD(S) as a firmally, Deve Gowda declared his two MPs would make a decision only on the eve of the trust vote.
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Within hours of the Left announcing the pullout, one of these potential kingmakers, the two-MP JD(S), announced it would take a final decision on supporting the government only on the day before the trust vote. Another, the three-MP TRS, wanted the Centre to start the process for carving out a separate Telangana state. And the SP said it had kept its side of the agreement by pledging support to the government; it now expected the government to do its bit.
Congress floor managers on Tuesday spoke about having 236 members on the coalition's side, and getting another 39 from the SP, taking its support past the magic figure of 272. But it was clear that the Congress could not take anyone for granted. The challenge will be to muster the numbers and keep its flock together in a situation where smaller parties increasingly figure they could be the only ones standing between the government staying or going.
The first sign of the difficulty of the task came from former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda. Even as Congress managers counted the JD(S) as a firmally, Deve Gowda declared his two MPs would make a decision only on the eve of the trust vote.
To read the full article, click here...
To read the ePaper, visit: http://epaper.hindustantimes.com
Labels: Andhra Pradesh, bargains, challenge, Congress, creation of Telangana, decision, difficulty, former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, government, KCR, Lok Sabha, Samajwadi Party, Telangana state, TRS
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1:53 PM
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