New Delhi, July 17 (IANS) With just six days to go for the trust vote in parliament, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee Wednesday said he was still the speaker while his parent Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said he would take "an appropriate decision at the appropriate time".

"I am still the speaker," Chatterjee told reporters here.

The issue of what Chatterjee would do has gained prominence as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's trust vote in parliament draws closer. The Left's withdrawal of support has reduced the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to a minority and each vote will be crucial for its survival.

The CPI-M leadership reportedly faces a dilemma with Chatterjee - who became the speaker as part of the Left's understanding with the UPA when it extended its outside support in 2004 - refusing to resign after the Communists pulled out last week.

Chatterjee's comments came just after CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat reiterated that the decision to give up the speaker's post had been left to Chatterjee.

"The speaker will decide himself what he wants to do," Karat told reporters in Chennai airport where he arrived Wednesday for a party meeting.

CPI-M politburo member Sitaram Yechury added here: "The party has taken a decision that it was up to the speaker. The speaker will take an appropriate decision at the appropriate time."

Yechury also issued a statement clarifying that the party was following "normal parliamentary practice" by putting Chatterjee's name in the list of MPs submitted to President Pratibha Patil after it withdrew support.

Pointing out that there had been a "disinformation" campaign over the inclusion of Chatterjee's name in the list, Yechury said: "What I had said is that the speaker's name should be included in the CPI-M list as he was elected as a CPI-M candidate but with an asterisk denoting that currently he is the Lok Sabha speaker, as is the normal parliamentary practice."

The ruling Congress condemned the controversy over the speaker's resignation.

"The Congress condemns the unfortunate attempt to politicise the high constitutional office of the Lok Sabha speaker, which has resulted in a public controversy. The speaker is appointed by the entire Lok Sabha, not by one party," Congress spokesperson Jayanti Natarajan said.

"The speaker rises above party affiliation and serves as the speaker of the Lok Sabha in a non-partisan manner. The controversy will create a dangerous precedence," Natarajan warned.

Two jailed UPA MPs to vote in trust motion

Patna, July 17 (IANS) There was good news for the beleaguered Manmohan Singh government as the Patna High Court Wednesday gave a green signal to two jailed MPs of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) to take part the July 22 trust vote.

The court granted Mohammed Shahabuddin of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) permission to go to New Delhi and vote in parliament. He had moved the court last week.

The court also granted bail to Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) MP Surajbhan Singh, who has appealed his conviction for murder.

A division bench of the court granted bail to Singh after hearing a petition filed by him that challenged his conviction by a Begusarai court last month for the murder of a farmer over 16 years ago.

Both RJD and LJP are part of the UPA government, which has been reduced to a minority after the Left parties withdrew their support to it last week.

While the Samajwadi party has come forward to back the government, every vote is crucial for the UPA's survival as it strives to prove majority in the 545-member Lok Sabha.

Shahabuddin, arrested in New Delhi in 2005, is lodged in Siwan jail in Bihar.

The RJD leader was convicted for the first time in March 2007 for his role in an attack on a Communist Party of India-Marxist Leninist (CPI-ML) office in Siwan in 1998.

In May 2007, a special court sentenced him to life imprisonment for the kidnapping and murder of Chhote Lal Gupta, a CPI-ML worker, in 1999.

In August 2007, he was sentenced to 10 years in jail for attacking then Siwan superintendent of police S.K. Singhal in 1996.

Shahabuddin is a Lok Sabha member from Siwan since 1996.

Singh was in jail after the Begusarai court sentenced him to life imprisonment.

"The court has now given him bail on the plea that no evidence of the MP's direct involvement in the murder exists," said Rana Pratap Singh, his lawyer.

Singh is considered close to Steel Minister and LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan.

Last month a Begusarai fast track court judge Ravi Prakash Dhar Dubey jailed three people, including Surajbhan Singh, for life, a day after they were convicted for farmer Rami Singh's murder Jan 16, 1992.

Early this month Singh appealed to the high court against his conviction. The MP faces 30 criminal charges, including those of murder, extortion, kidnapping and looting.

Karat hints at realignment of political forces

Chennai, July 17 (IANS) Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat Wednesday indicated a possible realignment of political forces in the country, even as he reiterated that the Left parties would not allow the the India-US nuclear deal to be operationalised.

There is going to be "a realignment of forces", he said, while addressing a late night public meeting here, adding: "It is possible to form a non-BJP alternative to the Congress".

Promising a Third Front as an alternative to the Congress and the BJP, Karat said: "We have some advice for the non-Congress friends in the (ruling) UPA (at the centre)..."The Congress is a sinking ship, you must get out of it as fast as you can."

He vowed that the Left parties would continue their struggle against the India-US nuclear deal even if Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government wins the July 22 trust vote in parliament. The trust vote was triggered by the communists withdrawing their support to the government over the nuclear deal.

"We will defeat their (government's) attempts to operationalize the nuclear deal," Karat asserted.

Accusing the Congress of not being able to contain communalism, Karat said: "We gave them (the Congress) support to keep communal forces out. But in election after after election, in Punjab, in Himachal Pradesh, in Uttaranchal and now in Karnataka the Congress has lost power. The Congress is unable to keep the communal forces out".

The Left's record "is very good" he pointed out, noting: "In West Bengal, in Kerala and Tripura, we have not let the BJP have even a single MLA or MP".

"The Congress cannot keep communal forces out by aligning with the USA and imperialist forces", Karat said, adding: "The BJP is the most imperialist force in the country".

"People will punish the Congress for inflation, for the farmers' distress and for making India a satellite of the USA," Karat maintained.

"The Congress adopted a pro-poor Common Minimum Programme in 2004, when it was elected. Now, Manmohan Singh is adopting a pro-George Bush Common Minimum Programme", he charged.

Communist Party of India leader D Raja, speaking from the same platform, said his party was "not opposed" to nuclear energy but "we oppose the 123 Act (that will make the nuclear deal operational)," he maintained.

"Is it worth paying this political and economic price for just about four percent from nuclear power in the energy basket by 2020?" Raja asked.

Shiv Sena MPs not being lured to UPA: Thackeray

Mumbai, July 17 (IANS) Shiv Sena executive president Udhav Thackeray Wednesday rubbished speculation that Maharashtra Revenue Minister Narayan Rane was planning to lure Sena MPs into the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) ahead of the next general elections.

"I have full faith in my party men. They are no longer interested in jumping into a garbage bin," Thackeray said here.

He was interacting with the media to announce the support of the Agri Sena and its leader Rajaram Salvi for the next parliament and assembly elections.

Without naming Rane, a former chief minister, Thackeray said: "Everybody knows what happened to those who left us and jumped into the garbage bin. I am sure my men will take a lesson from that and not join that band."

He also said that if Shiv Sainiks could join the Congress owing to the delimitation of constituencies, then even people from the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were in touch with the Sena.

He said that apart from the India-US nuclear deal, there were many other issues like high inflation, spiralling fuel prices and farmer suicides that would be considered during the trust vote in parliament.

N-deal in nation's interest, Left should back it: Paswan

New Delhi/Patna, July 17 (IANS) Underlining that the India-US nuclear deal was in national interest, Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan Wednesday called upon the Left parties to support it.

"India's civil nuclear cooperation is not with the US alone but 45 countries. The deal is in the nation's interests, and the Left parties should reconsider their decision and support the deal," Paswan told reporters on the margins of a function here.

He was referring to the India-specific safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that would open doors of global nuclear commerce for the country.

Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) has four members in the Lok Sabha and is part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

"India needs the nuclear deal," Paswan told reporters after addressing an annual steel industry conclave of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), a leading industry lobby.

Earlier, Paswan said in Patna that the nuclear deal was "essential for the development of the country".

Without naming any political outfit opposing the deal, the minister said: "It is baseless to say that India will become a slave of the US after the nuclear deal."

Paswan, who addressed a series of meetings in Bihar in the past two days, reiterated in Patna that the UPA government would win the July 22 trust vote with the support of "old and new allies".

He said that the nuclear deal would pave the way for electricity in every household across the country, similar to the cell phone revolution.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government, reduced to a minority after the Left parties withdrew support over India's nuclear deal with the US, will seek the trust of the house during the special session of the Lok Sabha July 21-22.

Exuding confidence that the government would prove majority in the house, Paswan wondered how the Left parties were on the same cart along with the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"We will have both the government and the deal. India needs energy, and the deal promises to make the country energy efficient."

Mumbai business community pledges support to UPA

Mumbai, July 16 (IANS) Indian Merchants' Chamber (IMC), a leading industry forum that represents nearly 250,000 businesses in the western region, Wednesday extended its full support to the Manmohan Singh government, which is seeking vote of confidence in parliament July 22 over the Indo-US nuclear deal.

In a letter sent to the prime minister, IMC said the Mumbai business community would stand by the government's efforts to clinch the nuclear deal.

IMC president N. Chaini said in the letter that India should not shy away from dealing with powerful countries like the US and "entering into agreements" in the national interest.

The letter urges the prime minister to go ahead with the processes needed for "early fruition of the nuclear deal".

"The entire business community of western region of the country vowed to unequivocally stand by you and your government not because of the fact that the nuclear deal would benefit business communities but because it is entirely in the larger national interest," IMC said.

It added that IMC had carried out in-house studies and held various panel discussions and seminars on the nuclear deal before arriving at a conclusion.

Chaini said the country "needs to shed all vestiges of its erstwhile isolationist policies which were adapted in the early years of its freedom when India was not economically and technologically strong enough to protect itself from the tentacles of the cold war".

Show proof or apologise, Congress tells Bardhan

New Delhi, July 17 (IANS) The Congress Wednesday asked Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary A.B. Bardhan to apologise or produce evidence for his remarks that MPs were being offered Rs.250 million to vote for the government in parliament.

"We call upon him to produce evidence or else tender an apology for bringing parliamentarians to slanderous disrepute," party spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan said.

Bardhan had Monday accused the government of indulging in "horse trading" to muster the numbers on its side for the July 22 trust vote.

Natarajan said Bardhan had made unwarranted allegations against the Lok Sabha MPs and brought parliament to disrepute.

"Bardhan owes to the nation to substantiate the serious allegations made by him and should come out with the name of MPs who allegedly received money and those (who were) allegedly offered," said Natarajan.

Opposition to boycott n-deal debate in West Bengal assembly

Kolkata, July 17 (IANS) The West Bengal assembly will discuss the India-US nuclear deal Thursday, but the main opposition Trinamool Congress, as also the Congress, will boycott the debate - terming it "unconstitutional".

Speaker Hasim Abdul Halim announced in the house Wednesday that the house would discuss the nuclear deal on Thursday.

The Trinamool Congress and the Congress immediately walked out of the house, describing the speaker's decision as "unconstitutional, unconventional and unethical".

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and three other Left parties that rule West Bengal last week withdrew their support to Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to protest its decision to go ahead with the nuclear deal.

Differences in the CPI-M on the issue have now come into the open, with senior leader Subhas Chakraborty shooting off a letter to party general secretary Prakash Karat on the decision to vote along with the Bharatiya Janata Party in the July 22 trust vote in parliament.

Asserting that Trinamool Congress legislators would not participate in the debate, Leader of Opposition Partha Chatterjee said in the assembly lobby: "The proposals for various departments are now being deliberated upon during the budget session. These important discussions should not be stalled by taking up a discussions on the nuclear deal".

Senior Congress leader Manas Bhuniya said the assembly was not authorised to discuss the matter in view of the July 21-22 special session of the Lok Sabha that has been called to enable the Manmohan Singh government seek a trust vote.

"The entire country as well as the international community are looking to the trust vote. No platform is authorised to have any discussion on the issue now," Bhuniya said, and announced that his party's legislators would skip the debate.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee assailed the Left Front government for scheduling the debate without first discussing this with the opposition parties.

"The government bypassed the house business advisory committee. The government's audacity has crossed all limits. This is a very important matter. The ruling Front should have taken the opposition parties into confidence," a fuming Banerjee said at her residence.

Banerjee said in the absence of the opposition parties, the resolution passed by the house after the debate should be termed a "Left Front resolution and not an all-party resolution".

"The government is trying to spoon feed us. They don't have any respect for democratic propriety. Enough is enough. This government should go," she said, and alleged that the debate had been scheduled to deflect the people's attention from the "internal bickering" in the CPI-M on the deal.

She contended that the divergence of opinion in the CPI-M was not borne out of ideological differences but "a fight for enjoying the loaves and fishes of power".

By scheduling the debate, the government had resorted to dividing the people into "we" and "you, Banerjee contended.

Karat vows to continue anti-nuke stir

Chennai, July 17 (IANS) Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat said Wednesday the Left parties would continue their struggle against the India-US nuclear deal even if the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wins the July 22 trust vote in parliament.

Karat, speaking at a late night public meeting here, said: "We will defeat their (government's) attempts to operationalize the nuclear deal".

Promising a Third Front, Karat said: "We have some advice for the non-Congress friends in the (ruling) UPA (at the centre)".

There is going to be "a realignment of forces", he said, adding: "It is possible to form a non-BJP alternative to the Congress". Observers In Tamil Nadu saw the call as being mainly addressed to the ruling DMK that is part of the UPA.

"People will punish the Congress for inflation, for the farmers' distress and for making India a satellite of the USA," Karat maintained.

It won't be right to vote against UPA: Subhas Chakraborty

Kolkata, July 17 (IANS) West Bengal Left leader Subhas Chakraborty Wednesday once again indicated that it would not be correct to vote against the Congress-led government along with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the July 22 confidence motion.

Chakraborty, a Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) state secretariat member, had Monday said in a letter to party general secretary Prakash Karat that the communists would have to answer embarrassing questions from the people if its MPs voted against the Congress.

Asked whether he still stuck to his views on the issue, Chakaraborty said: "Yes... But I don't want to discuss my standpoint any further in public."

Peeved at Chakraborty's public pronouncements, the party's central committee has asked the state unit to seek an explanation from the firebrand leader, who is also the state's sports and transport minister.

CPI(M) state secretariat member Benoy Konar Tuesday said that Chakraborty's public comments on the issue went against the principle of democratic centralism followed by the party.

The state secretariat is set to discuss the matter Friday.

Konar said Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee would also have to abide by the party decision regarding continuing in his post.

Speculation is rife that Chatterjee has shot off a letter to Karat, expressing his opposition to the party's decision to vote against the UPA government in the confidence motion.

Chatterjee is reportedly under pressure from the party to quit the post and oppose the July 22 trust motion in the Lok Sabha.

The CPI-M and three other Left parties withdrew support to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, protesting its decision to go ahead with the India-US nuclear deal. The Congress-led UPA government now faces a crucial floor test in the Lok Sabha to prove its majority.

Astrology behind trust vote dates?

New Delhi, July 17 (IANS) After looking at many dates to convene parliament for the trust vote, the government chose July 21-22. While some say the dates followed astrological advice, official sources say they wanted enough time to get most number of MPs on their side.

Apart from calling back United Progressive Alliance (UPA) MPs vacationing in cooler places abroad, some UPA allies had to get their members out of jail. They needed time to approach courts for special permission to take the MPs to New Delhi for the July 22 trust vote.

Both the Samajwadi Party, the foe-turned-friend of the Congress, and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) have two members each in prison.

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No work in ministries

Government offices seem to be in a "holiday mood" as the ministers are busy mustering MPs to save the UPA government.

Most ministries don a languid mood. Many bureaucrats, one of them said, were spending more time on tea and coffee than on office files.

"Nothing is happening in any of the ministries. Most proposals that would have been cleared by this time are getting delayed," said an official on the condition of anonymity.

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Will Vajpayee vote?

One speculation doing the rounds is whether former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will vote Tuesday.

Although his aides insist that he will vote, speculation is rife that the senior most BJP leader will be unable to come to parliament because of his health. He has not been seen in public for some time.

Although the Congress will be happy if he doesn't turn up, ministers and MPs have their fingers crossed.

IANS