Advani dinner for MPs today

BY AMIT AGNIHOTRI

New Delhi

July 19: Equally under pressure to get the numbers right, the NDA has called a meeting of its MPs on Sunday as part of its dinner diplomacy to keep the flock together ahead of the crucial UPA trust vote on July 22.

The NDA MPs will be treated to a gala dinner thrown at the residence of the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Mr L.K. Ad-vani, after a meeting to ensure their support.

Political watchers said though the alliance has been claiming the support of all 140 MPs, repeated counter-claims from the UPA camp of "having sp-oken to some of its MPs to abstain from the trust vo-te" has given nightmares to the NDA. Such is the anxiety that the BJP, the NDA’s major constituent, is not averse to aligning with its opponent, the CPI(M), on defeating PM Manmohan Singh’s motion of confidence.

According to media reports, some Lok Sabha members from the SAD, with eight MPs, and the Shiv Sena, with 12 MPs, have a different view than that of their party on the deal and might support the UPA government during the trust vote.

Congress leader Veerappa Moily claimed a few MPs from the SAD and Shiv Sena may abstain from voting. Denying his claim, SAD president Su-khbir Singh Badal said his MPs would abide by the party whip.

Expressing confidence about managing the numbers, BJP spokesperson Arun Jaitley said other parties were in touch with them and would vote along with the NDA on July 22.

Meanwhile, the chief whips and deputy chief whips of the NDA parties met in the capital to chalk out the strategy for the trust vote. According to sources, they were told not to attack the UPA government only on the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, but also on issues like price rise, minority appeasement, internal security etc.