As Kejriwal begins his meetings with opposition parties, including the All India Trinamool Congress, Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena (Uddhav faction), it is hoping that the Congress will throw its weight behind AAP. The party, which has weaned away a large chunk of the Congress’ core supporters in the national capital and relegated it to political wilderness, needs the Congress’ support for its Rajya Sabha plan to be successful.
The AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh said, “We will wait for Congress to take a stand on the ordinance promulgated by the Centre and then approach them for support in the Upper House.”
Kejriwal is expected to call on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday.
Since the AAP has only 10 members in the Rajya Sabha, it needs a united opposition to vote against the bill replacing the ordinance.
The numbers are stacked up against the opposition. In the 238-member House (which includes five nominated members and three independents and others), the BJP has 93 members. For a bill to be passed, the government needs a simple majority of half the members present and voting on the day. With the support of the BJD (nine MPs), YSR Congress Party (nine MPs), AIADMK (four MPs) and RPI (Athawale) (one MP), it has 116 members supporting it out of the required number of 119. That is if none of the independents or the north-eastern parties (including AGP and Mizo National Front) do not vote for the BJP.
The Congress is non-committal on its stance on a bill replacing the ordinance. Party spokesman Anand Sharma said the Congress had welcomed the Supreme Court verdict. But when asked whether the Congress would support the AAP and vote against the government’s bill replacing the ordinance when it is brought to the Rajya Sabha, he said, “Congress will discuss the matter with all opposition parties when the House meets and then take a call.”If the opposition comes together, it could easily bring together 101 members in the Rajya Sabha – Congress (31 MPs), Trinamool Congress (12), AAP (10), DMK (10), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (7), RJD (6), CPM (5), JDU (5), NCVP (4), SP (3), Shiv Sena (3), CPI (2), JMM (2) and RLD (1). The numbers could go up if the BSP and the TDP, with one MP each, vote with the opposition.
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