The UPA managed to defeat the cut motions sponsored by the Opposition to protest rising prices of petroleum and fertilisers, leaving UPA as the victor and the Opposition in complete disarray.

Author: Jillian D'silva
Date: April 28, 2010

The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government defeated the Opposition's cut motion comfortably, as Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati did a U-turn last minute and supported the Manmohan Singh Government. "To keep the communal forces at bay, we will vote for the UPA on the cut motion," Mayawati had announced in Lucknow.

The Government was also helped by Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janata Dal and Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party, who walked out of the Lok Sabha before the proceedings. Their logic was that they cannot stay in a platform which is being shared by the BJP. "If the CPI-M decides not to take BJP's support in its cut motion, we will go with them," Lalu said in the Lok Sabha before walking out.

A total of 246 MPs voted against the cut motion and only 162 voted in favour of it, which is quite a comfortable margin for the Government to stay in power.

Opposition parties, including the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), had brought the cut motions to protest Government inability to control prices of essential commodities including fuels and fertilisers.

A cut motion is a veto used by members of a legislature against a specific allocation in Budget proposals - in this case, the proposals to hike prices of fuel and fertilisers. This motion tests the strength of the government in the House. If it is adopted, it amounts to a no-confidence vote, and the government falls.

After the first cut motion, moved by Bharatiya Janata Party MP and Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj, was defeated, the House agreed to club all the other cut motions. But the other cut motions too were defeated. In the other cut motions, the Government got the support of 289 MPs while 201 members voted against it, thus demonstrating that that it had enough support in the House to take on any challengers.

In a startling development, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM MP Shibu Soren -- facing murder charges -- voted for the UPA, although the BJP backs his state government. This set off speculation that there may be a new power equation in the state which would alter the JMM’s ties with its coalition partner - the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP).

However, JMM MP Hemant Soren later claimed that it happened by "mistake" and made it clear there was no move to form a government in Jharkhand with Congress backing. Hemant, Rajya Sabha MP and son of Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren, stated, "It has happened by mistake. It is a human error which happens due to confusion during voting. We met BJP President Nitin Gadkari last night and explained to him the real position."

With all the cut motions defeated, the stage is set for the smooth passage of Union Budget 2010-11. The Congress, for its part, was sure the Opposition would not go to the extent of pulling down the Government, given that no party is prepared for a General Election so soon after last year's polls, but is trying to ensure that the numbers are in its favour when the Finance Bill is put to vote.