UPA to stake claim for govt formation today

Dr. Manmohan Singh is most likely to start his second successive innings after he will meet President Pratibha Patil Tuesday and formally stake claim for the formation of new UPA government.

Dr. Singh will also handover the letter of support of the alliance partners to the President. But before that the meeting of the pre-poll alliance partners of the UPA are going to meet here at 10, Janpath, the residence of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, to discuss the government formation and the distribution of the portfolios in the new Cabinet.

Apart from pre-poll partners, the Congress-led UPA has already received unconditional and unsolicited support from Independents and a number of parties, including BSP, SP, RJD, and JD(S), among others.

In fact, the Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh met President yesterday and submitted the letter of support. RJD, too, has already submitted the letter of support.

Explaining her support to the government, BSP supremo Mayawati addressing newly elected MPs of the party, senior party office bearers and ministers of the state government in Lucknow yesterday, said the decision had taken taking into consideration of the present political scenario of the country and to check communal forces.

SP has 23 MPs, BSP has 21 and RJD has four MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha.

The Bodoland People`s Front, Sikkim Democratic Front and Nagaland People`s Front, each with one MP, have also written to the President extending their support to the UPA government. Three Independent MPs from Maharashtra have also marked in the swelling tally.

Dr. Manmohan Singh-led government will tentatively swear-in on Friday (May 22).

Earlier on Monday, Dr. Singh was elected as the Congress Parliamentary Party leader and leader of the Rajya Sabha. Pranab Mukherjee was given the charge of Lok Sabha.

The UPA’s tally in the Lok Sabha increased from 261 to 316, a rise of 55 mark after it received unsolicited support from BSP and SP, apart from some other parties and Independents.

The decision has not been made so far whether to get support from these parties which are its rival in the respective states. Congress party sources said the decision would be taken after the pre-poll allies meeting today.