The Hindu : Govt. will defeat no-trust motion: Venkaiah Naidu

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 17, 2003

National

National

Govt. will defeat no-trust motion: Venkaiah Naidu

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD Aug. 16. The BJP president, M. Venkaiah Naidu, has ruled out any threat to the National Democratic Alliance Government on account of the no-confidence motion proposed by the Opposition.

The Government would not only win during the voting on the motion in the Lok Sabha comfortably, it would also help consolidate the unity among NDA partners, he told mediapersons here today.

Mr. Naidu wondered why the Opposition had opted for the no-trust move when the Government had enough numbers on its side. The Opposition could not rationalise its stand. The debate would expose the hollowness of the Opposition parties, he said.

The Government would convert the challenge into an opportunity to tell the people about the good deeds achieved under the stewardship of the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee. Mr. Vajpayee's response to the debate on the motion would focus on the Government's contribution.

Terming the Opposition move an act of frustration, Mr. Naidu said its demand for reference of the Central Vigilance Commission's report on defence-related purchases to the Public Accounts Committee was meaningless. The Opposition stood on false prestige to protect its sagging image. It needlessly stalled the proceedings of Parliament on this issue as also on the "false" allegation that the Government had interfered in the CBI investigations into the Babri Masjid demolition. The Defence Minister, George Fernandes, was targeted by the Opposition for the defence purchases for well over 18 months.

It was against parliamentary norms to demand that only the Prime Minister reply to the questions raised against the Defence Minister, Mr. Naidu said. It was decided at a high-level meeting of the BJP on Friday that Mr. Fernandes would speak on the debate on the no-confidence motion.

The BJP president felt that the Opposition plumped for the no-trust move in a bid to discredit the Government on the assumption of early Lok Sabha polls.

"They (Opposition) were under a wrong impression that it was the last session of the Lok Sabha," he said ruling out a snap poll. The no-trust motion would in fact boomerang on the Opposition, he said.

He appealed to the Tamil Nadu Government to reconsider cases registered against the former Chief Minister, M. Karunanidhi and three DMK leaders under the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA).

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National