NDA about to achieve two-thirds majority in Rajya Sabha amid Opposition defections

View of the Rajya SabhaCredit: PTI File Photo

Driven by Trinamool Congress rebellions, the NDA shores up numbers in both Houses to clear a path for major constitutional amendments.

New Delhi: The BJP’s quest for a numerical supremacy in Parliament to avoid instances of failing to amend the Constitution may be a long road in the Lok Sabha while it is cruising towards a two-thirds majority in the Rajya Sabha aided by defections from rivals.

At least 20 Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha members have severed their links with their leadership and indicated their support to the BJP-led NDA while three Rajya Sabha members from the Mamata Banerjee-led party have quit the Upper House in recent days. The BJP-led NDA has the support of 294 members, including Speaker Om Birla and independent, in the Lok Sabha but the ruling coalition could now boast of 314 members’ support with the rebel Trinamool MPs aligning with the NDA camp , which needs another 49 for a two-thirds majority in the House of 543.

As of now till we are writing this news, there are three vacancies in the Lok Sabha and this would bring down the number to 360 for a two-thirds majority, with the ruling BJP requiring another 46 to touch the mark. The BJP’s attempt comes following West Bengal Assembly election results as well as rumblings in INDA bloc with the exit of the DMK.

While the DMK is angry over the Congress ditching it and joining hands with the TVK in Tamil Nadu after its electoral loss, the M K Stalin-led party has not shown signs of changing preferences and instead has made it clear that it would continue to ally with non-Congress Opposition on national issues.

The Congress has also extended an olive branch, with top leader Rahul Gandhi saying that he is sure that the DMK would be part of the Opposition in the fight against the BJP. Meanwhile, there are speculation that the BJP may also be eyeing nine-member Shiv Sena (UBT) and eight-member NCP (SP). However, the Congress believes that the “evil designs” of Home Minister Amit Shah “must not and will not succeed”, with party general secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh recalling that the “self–styled Chanakya” was “humiliated” when the NDA was “convincingly rejected” in the Lok Sabha on April 17 when it tried to pass the “dangerous” Constitution Amendment Bill dealing with delimitation.

“Never before has anybody tried to engineer a two-thirds majority for his party in the Lok Sabha as the Union Home Minister is desperately doing these days in the run-up to the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Stung by that resounding defeat, he is now busy breaking Opposition parties and making a complete mockery of democracy. The fight is on…,” he said.

In the Rajya Sabha, the NDA numbers would go up to 152 from 148, if an independent candidate fielded in Jharkhand manages to win the June 18 election. It could further go up to 155, eight short of the two-thirds majority mark, as the BJP can win three seats in West Bengal which were vacated by Trinamool MPs.

The BJP had shored up their numbers in the recent past by ensuring defection of three BJD MPs who resigned and ensuring victory of an independent from Odisha.

The I.N.D.I.A. bloc has been reduced to 63 with the exit of the DMK (8) and desertion of seven AAP MPs. However, the Opposition bloc could get the support of at least 20 of the 28 MPs not aligned with I.N.D.I.A., including DMK, BJD (5), AAP (3), BRS (3) and DMDK (1). However, the NDA numbers could come down by two in November if the Rajya Sabha elections for 11 seats in Uttar Pradesh go by the existing numerical strength. The BJP may be reduced from 10 to eight while the Samajwadi Party could see its tally rising from one to three in the polls.

( With PTI Inputs )