The ongoing power tussles between the Bharatiya Janata Party and all opposition parties that have ganged up against it for Telugu Desam Party’s no-confidence motion against the government took an interesting turn after Shiv Sena indicated that it will most likely remain neutral.
Sena, which is BJP’s oldest political ally, had kept its cards close to its chest when a no-confidence vote was supposed to be tabled against Narendra Modi’s government in the Lok Sabha on Friday. This motion was introduced by TDP right after it left the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance and also by Andhra Pradesh’s YSR Congress Party.
When asked about the saffron outfit’s stance on the issue, senior leaders had abstained from publicly disclosing anything and said party chief Uddhav Thackeray will take the final call. Although the trust motion got postponed as Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan adjourned the House following protests by lawmakers, it now seems that Sena will most probably abstain from the vote, instead of directly backing or opposing the BJP government.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was reported to have met senior Sena ministers along with state BJP chief Raosaheb Danve this week to ensure support for the no-confidence motion. Fadnavis had told reporters that Sena is BJP’s “valued ally” and it will back the Modi government when the trust vote takes place.