NEW DELHI: In another move aimed at consolidating the ruling National Democratic Alliance ( NDA ) when contentious bills including on the Waqf Board are to be tabled in Parliament this year, BJP has left key parliamentary panels for NDA constituents to helm.
The JD(U), which did not have adequate numbers to head a committee, has assigned the committee on transport, tourism and culture which will be headed by Sanjay Jha, working president of the Bihar ally.
Another NDA ally, Telugu Desam Party ’s Maguntha Sreenivasulu Reddy will be head of the housing and urban affairs committee. The lone NCP Lok Sabha member Sunil Tatkare will be heading the panel on petroleum and natural gas , one of the coveted panels, and Shiv Sena's Shrirang Appa Barne will helm the committee on energy.
The gesture towards NCP is significant because it comes despite the assessment that Ajit Pawar's failure to transfer the votes to candidates belonging to BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde), considered as a key factor behind the poor performance of their alliance in LS polls.
The responsibility for Tatkare shows that BJP is not having a rethink on its plan to keep Ajit Pawar on its side.
The allies, NCP and JD (U), too have reciprocated as they have been more assertive towards issues on which the BJP on previous occasions used to be isolated especially on its Hindutva issues.
Unlike the NDA during Atal-Advani era when the alliance was based on an agreed “common minimum programme” as per which the core Hindutva issues professed by the BJP were kept away, the current NDA constituents have indicated a level of comfort on such issues.
JDU supremo and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has, in a first, recently complimented PM Modi for construction of the Ram Mandir and development projects in Ayodhya while also highlighting Bihar govt's scheme for development of Punaura Dham, revered birthplace of Sita in Sitamarhi district of the state.
In his letter, Kumar congratulated the PM on construction of the grand Ram temple in Ayodhya and development projects aimed at enhancing the holy city's infrastructure.
TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu’s aggressive posturing towards alleged adulteration of Tirupati ladoos for which his government has constituted a high-powered SIT also jells with BJP’s line.
All the NDA constituents have supported the “One Nation One Election” move, a bill which is expected in the winter session this year and there is a possibility that the BJP allies will be supportive of the Waqf bill too, another legislation expected in the same session.
The JD(U), which did not have adequate numbers to head a committee, has assigned the committee on transport, tourism and culture which will be headed by Sanjay Jha, working president of the Bihar ally.
Another NDA ally, Telugu Desam Party ’s Maguntha Sreenivasulu Reddy will be head of the housing and urban affairs committee. The lone NCP Lok Sabha member Sunil Tatkare will be heading the panel on petroleum and natural gas , one of the coveted panels, and Shiv Sena's Shrirang Appa Barne will helm the committee on energy.
The gesture towards NCP is significant because it comes despite the assessment that Ajit Pawar's failure to transfer the votes to candidates belonging to BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde), considered as a key factor behind the poor performance of their alliance in LS polls.
The responsibility for Tatkare shows that BJP is not having a rethink on its plan to keep Ajit Pawar on its side.
The allies, NCP and JD (U), too have reciprocated as they have been more assertive towards issues on which the BJP on previous occasions used to be isolated especially on its Hindutva issues.
Unlike the NDA during Atal-Advani era when the alliance was based on an agreed “common minimum programme” as per which the core Hindutva issues professed by the BJP were kept away, the current NDA constituents have indicated a level of comfort on such issues.
JDU supremo and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has, in a first, recently complimented PM Modi for construction of the Ram Mandir and development projects in Ayodhya while also highlighting Bihar govt's scheme for development of Punaura Dham, revered birthplace of Sita in Sitamarhi district of the state.
In his letter, Kumar congratulated the PM on construction of the grand Ram temple in Ayodhya and development projects aimed at enhancing the holy city's infrastructure.
TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu’s aggressive posturing towards alleged adulteration of Tirupati ladoos for which his government has constituted a high-powered SIT also jells with BJP’s line.
All the NDA constituents have supported the “One Nation One Election” move, a bill which is expected in the winter session this year and there is a possibility that the BJP allies will be supportive of the Waqf bill too, another legislation expected in the same session.
