Shatrughan Sinha to vote against no-confidence motion

BJP member of parliament, Shatrughan Sinha has cleared his stand on the issue of no-confidence motion. He has made it clear that he will vote against the no-confidence motion. The two-time member of parliament has also made it clear that he has no intention of quitting the BJP. The desperate no-confidence motion has been moved by the former BJP ally TDP and others and is the first no-confidence motion ever since the BJP stormed to power in 2014. Sinha has been making some adverse comments about the party and its leadership in the recent past. He has been constantly making negative comments about the present government’s policies and party functioning. However, he has now said, “I am a member of the BJP and will follow party command as a disciplined soldier … I will be with the party during the troubled times and go with it to defeat the opposition-sponsored no-confidence vote.”

Shatrughan Sinha has made it clear that he will not violated the party whip under any circumstances and that he will vote in his party’s favour only. Clarifying, his critical comments about the BJP, Sinha said that it was like showing “mirror” and that he would continue doing this in the future as well but it was all within the family. This seems like a very strong statement by Sinha making it clear that despite his over the top comments his allegiances lies firmly with the BJP.

Giving the impression that the no-confidence motion was a futile move on the part of the opposition he stated that, “I think there are intellectuals in opposition but they should’ve done it later. Because we have the numbers & our moral is also up. I haven’t left BJP & party hasn’t left me. As long as I’m in BJP,I’ll support it & follow every whip.” This would have definitely come as a shock for the opposition as they must have been hopeful that at least people like Sinha might switch sides driven by the no-confidence motion. It was already clear that the no-confidence motion was merely a political stunt aimed given that the numbers are totally in the government’s favour. The BJP itself boasts of 273 members in a 535-member house and this figure goes up to 314 as far as NDA is concerned. But it seems that the BJP is managing its members rather well and the opposition’s politically motivated no-confidence motion will not be able to spring up any surprises.

As per reports, Shatrughan Sinha was being seen as someone close to Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family in the recent past. This was becoming more evident after Sinha met Lalu Prasad in Ranchi jail, he also attended an Iftar party on June 15 that was hosted by Lalu’s son and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. Bihar chief minister, Nitish Kumar was not invited for the same. These developments might have encouraged the opposition to bring the no-confidence motion and cause a rift within the BJP. However, Sinha’s statement must have come as a pleasant surprise for the BJP. This will also show the opposition its place and send across the message that BJP does not only boast of massive strength in the Parliament but its members also stand steadfastly with the party in turbulent times.