PM invokes Sikh Guru's battle cry

PM invokes Sikh Guru's battle cry while moving trust motion

NEW DELHI, JULY 21 (PTI) :


A Sikh guru's battle cry was today invoked by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to affirm that he would not be deterred from the path of "good work", as he sought a vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha today.

"Deh siva var mohe, shubh karman te kabhu na darru. Na daru arso jab jaye ladoo, nischey kar apni jeet karun

"Ar sikh hoon, apne he man so, ehi lalch ho, gun ton uchroon. Jab aav ki oodh nidhan bane, at hi run main tab joojh maroon," Singh said reciting a verse of Guru Gobind Singh at the end of his speech moving the motion. (Oh God almighty, give me strength that nothing could deter me from the path of good work. And when I go to the battlefield I must emerge the winner. Give me strength so that I don't get distracted. I should be the winner even if I have to loose my life.)

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HINDUSTAN TIMES
Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, July 21, 2008



Trust motion was fully avoidable, says Manmohan


Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought the confidence of the Lok Sabha on Monday and said the trust vote was avoidable as he had promised to return to the Parliament before operationalising the contentious nuclear deal with Washington.

“It (trust motion) was fully avoidable," Manmohan Singh said as he moved the one-line motion seeking the trust of parliament for his government -- reduced to minority after the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led Left parties withdrew their legislative support in protest against the government’s move to carry the India-US civil nuclear deal forward.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/general-discussion/22323-pm-invokes-sikh-gurus-battle-cry.html

"I have repeatedly assured all, including the Left parties, that I myself would come to the guidance of parliament before operationalising the nuclear deal, if we were allowed to go to the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) to finalise the India-specific safeguards agreement),” said Manmohan Singh.

He said he regretted that the government had to seek a trust vote at a time its attention was on the economy, especially on controlling inflation and "implementing the welfare programmes for the people, particularly the farmers".

Interestingly, the prime minister was not expected to speak after moving the trust motion. According to his personal aides, Manmohan Singh, who arrived at his parliament house office at around 10.30 a.m., wrote the brief speech himself.

The prime minister reiterated that he and his government had taken all the decisions in the best interests of the Indian people.

"I assure the house and the country that every single decision, every policy decision was taken in the fullest confidence that it was in the best interest of the people of the country.”

After moving the motion - “that this house expresses its confidence in the council of ministers" - Manmohan Singh reminded the house that unlike his predecessors it was for the first time his United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government that had completed four years and two months in office was facing a trust vote.

In what is being seen as a snipe at the CPI-M’s present leadership, especially its general secretary Prakash Karat, Manmohan Singh praised the "sagacity, wisdom and visionary leadership" of communist veterans Jyoti Basu and Harkishan Singh Surjeet who he said were the architects of the coalition government.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

The prime minister also cited Guru Gobind Singh for showing his determination to go ahead without being scared of the repercussions.

In an uncharacteristic intervention, Manmohan Singh countered Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani’s criticism over his stance on the nuclear tests of 1998.

“The leader of opposition has said that in 1998 I had opposed the test and that I was arguing for nuclear proliferation during my speech in the Rajya Sabha. Let an objective person read the test of my speech and conclude …,” he said, while intervening during Advani's speech.

He added he had made his comments on the nuclear tests in the context of non-proliferation goals that India had put forward in the UN in 1988.

“We all were opposed to the sanctions (imposed on India after the Pokharan test). What I said was that we must prepare our country to face the sanctions.”


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Dhindsa accuses PM for ignoring interests of Sikhs and Punjab
Punjab Newsline Network
Monday, 21 July 2008


CHANDIGARH; Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Secretary General of Shiromani Akali Dal and MP from Sangrur on Monday during his speech in the Parliament over nuclear deal accused Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh for ignoring the interests of Sikhs and Punjab.

Dhindsa who spoke on behalf of SAD on trust motion said that his party was being pressurised to support the trust motion because Dr.Manmohan Singh is first Sikh Prime Minister of India. He said that SAD had also celebrated the appointment of first Sikh PM of this country but unfortunately Dr.Manmohan Singh has done nothing of the sort for Sikh community and Punjab which can influence Akali MP's to support him.

He said that SAD center government under Dr.Manmohan Singh had not given fair deal to farmers of the state. They are committing suicides and we cant allow the farmers to die because our PM is Sikh, he commented. He added that PM has failed to give any industrial package to Punjab well knowing that agriculture was failing and is not profitable. He said that when agriculture minister can give lot to his state Maharashtra, why PM cant give to his state.

Dhindsa said that SAD had demanded to implement Anandkaraj Act to solemnise the Sikh marriages but demand was not accepted. He said that Congress government at center tried to dilute the powers of SGPC which controls Sikhs shrines in Punjab, HP and Haryana. He said that Congress tried to set up separate SGPC for Haryana. He also raised the issues of decreasing ratio of Sikhs in the army. He asked the PM what he had done for his state?

He said that SAD was under no obligation to support the PM for simple reason that he was a Sikh. He said that Punjab deserved a better dealing under his Prime Minister ship.

Dhindsa however supported that India needed nuclear energy and SAD is in its favour. he however said that that UPA government led by Congress has failed to satisfy the opposition and people of country on certain issues related to nuclear status of India. He said that armed forces were frustrated because of report of sixth pay commission. How can government accept that frustrated armed forces would be ready for nuclear war, if it happened.

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Punjab BJP president in favour on setting up nuclear power plant in state

GURPREET SINGH MEHAK - Punjabinewsline
Monday, 21 July 2008


FATEHGARH SAHIB: Punjab BJP president Rajinder Bhandari is in favour of setting up a nuclear power plant in the state.

While speaking to media persons at Mandi Gobindgarh on Monday after participating in a three days state level meeting of R.S.S., Bhandari said that there is urgent need of setting up a nuclear power plant in the state to make Punjab free from power shortage. He said the plant will not only fulfill power requirement of the state but it will also produce surplus power.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

He said due to summer there is much consumption of power so power shortage is natural but SAD-BJP alliance government is making all efforts to provide adequate power to people.

Bhandari said SAD-BJP alliance had won election in 93 municipalities of the state and president will be elected in municipalities as per alliance winners. Where BJP had upper hand, the president will be elected from BJP and where SAD is upper hand, the council president will be elected from SAD, he added.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

He clarified that in Mandi Gobindgarh president will be of SAD and vice president will be of BJP. Commenting on Dera Sacha Saudha controversy, Bhandari said BJP want peace in state and BJP never like violence.

He said if the UPA government could not manage to stay, BJP is ready for election. On this occasion, Manoranjan Kala, Minister for Local Bodies said that election in almost all municipalities will be held before July 23. He claimed that in all councils president will be from SAD-BJP alliance and there is no controversy over the selection. District BJP president Lal Chand Jindal, BJP SC Morcha state president Dharampal Rao was also present on the occasion.

India vote debate adjourned over bribery charges

From Reuters

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:26:03


By Bappa Majumdar

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - A vote of confidence debate in India's parliament on Tuesday was adjourned after opposition lawmakers interrupted the session and waved wads of cash they said were offered as bribes to abstain

The government is scheduled to face a confidence vote later on Tuesday that will decide the fate of a civilian nuclear deal with the United States and could trigger a snap election.

Television channels estimated the Congress-led coalition that negotiated the deal would sneak home by half a dozen or more votes against its former communist allies and opposition parties led by the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
But it was unclear when and if the vote would be held after opposition MPs interrupted proceedings by brandishing wads of cash, and demanding an inquiry.

"This is not a case of corruption for a small favour. This is an important event for the House," BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani told reporters outside parliament. "I have to say that the House has to seriously take it up."

Advani alleged the three opposition MPs were given a total of 10 million rupees (116,000 pounds) by government supporters as an advance payment for abstaining, and were offered much more.

Congress said the allegations were baseless.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

"This is all a drama, and it has been planted deliberately by the people who know they have lost the vote," said Congress spokesman Ashwini Kumar. "We are seriously looking into the allegations but the opposition knows we will win so they are resorting to such activities."

Accusations of horse-trading have swirled for days as both sides try to attract the support of smaller, regional or caste-based parties.

MARKETS RALLY

Investors are expecting a narrow win for the government, and bookmakers also favour the government.

That feeling has helped shares recover after a string of losses, the main share index rising by more than 10 percent in the last three sessions and a further 1.8 percent on Tuesday.

If the government falls there will probably be an election this year. It is also likely to lead to the scrapping of the civilian nuclear agreement and throw economic policy into limbo just as inflation rises to a 13-year-high.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh moved the confidence motion with a brief address on Monday, and is scheduled to make a full defence of the nuclear deal and his government's record in a concluding speech.

But that speech, expected around 5 p.m. (12:30 p.m. British time), is now likely to be delayed.

Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram, in a speech frequently interrupted by shouting from the opposition benches, defended the government's record and said nuclear power was vital if the country was to emulate the economic success of China.

"This government under Dr. Manmohan Singh's leadership is charting out a new path which will end India's nuclear isolation, which will pave the way for India becoming an economic superpower," he said. "I ask this house to give a resounding vote of confidence."
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

The nuclear deal would grant India access to foreign nuclear fuel and technology, unlocking $40 billion (20 billion pounds) in investment over the next 15 years, according to an Indian business lobby group.

But the communists withdrew their support for the government in protest over the deal, saying it made India a pawn of Washington. The BJP says the nuclear deal limits India's ability to test nuclear weapons.

The vote is so close several MPs who are ill were being flown or wheeled in on hospital beds, and others, in jail for crimes such as murder and extortion, have been granted temporary release and arrived at parliament on Tuesday in prison vans.

A government defeat would be a boost for the BJP, which has won a string of state elections this year against a backdrop of rising inflation and criticism that millions of poor Indians were not benefiting from the booming economy.

It would also boost the standing of Mayawati, leader of an increasingly influential party drawing much of its support from Dalits, formerly known as "untouchables".

Mayawati is trying to project herself as a third force and possible prime minister and has tried to wean away votes from the government.

BJP leader Advani said his party did not oppose nuclear cooperation or a strategic relationship with the United States, but said the nuclear deal made India "a subservient partner".

(Editing by Alistair Scrutton)

Soul_Jyot ji
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

Thanks for following this closely. In fact, I am now understanding better the controversy Advani has stirred up in other quarters earlier in the month viz his autobiography. Lots of puzzle pieces and in time they all get discovered at the bottom of the box.

Indian government wins confidence vote over U.S. nuclear deal


Associated Press
July 22, 2008 at 11:18 AM EDT


NEW DELHI — India's government has survived a confidence vote, clearing the way for it to finalize a landmark nuclear energy deal with the United States.

The government won with 275 voting for it and 256 against. The number of abstentions was not immediately clear.

The vote capped a week of intense politicking that saw the government rename an airport for a legislator's father, promise a high-level job to another, and — rival politicians allege — hand out millions of dollars to many others in an effort to survive.
Both sides did whatever they could to muster their forces.

One ailing legislator was wheeled in on a gurney, and a handful jailed for crimes ranging from murder to extortion were temporarily released from prison so they could vote.

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UPA Govt wins the trust vote



Expressindia.com
Tuesday , July 22, 2008


Prime Minister Manmohan Singh won a vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha with a comfortable margin belying predictions of a close contest on a day marred by unseemly scenes over allegations of bribery.


The Prime Minister's motion expressing confidence of the House in the Council of Ministers was carried with 275 votes in favour and 256 against.

In a House with an effective strength of 541, it was not immediately clear how many abstained. The results were announced after nearly an hour when officials corrected the initial figures which showed 253 votes in favour of the motion, 232 against and 2 abstentions in a total vote of 487.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

In the din caused by BJP members demanding Prime Minister's resignation and shouting down his speech, Singh laid his reply to the debate on the table of the House.

As Opposition members pressed for a division, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee ordered voting by electronic voting machine.

Even before the final result was announced, ruling alliance members went to the Prime Minister and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to greet them on the victory in the confidence motion, the first in over four years of this government.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

The Prime Minister sought the confidence of the House after the Left parties, which provided outside support since May 2004, withdrew it on the issue of government operationalising the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal by approaching the IAEA.

The two-day debate on the motion was often acrimonious but it took an entirely different turn after BJP members shocked the House by producing bundles of currency notes alleging bribes by the Samajwadi Party to them to abstain from voting.

Four BJP members, including former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, were permitted to vote from the inner lobby of the House through slips on account of their ill-health.

India's Outstretched Hand
New Delhi does its part to salvage a nuclear pact; now it's Congress's turn

WASHINGTON POST (USA) - Wednesday, July 23, 2008

UNTIL RECENTLY, it seemed that an ambitious Bush administration bid to restore nuclear cooperation between the United States and India might be dead, a victim of domestic Indian politics. Anti-American communist parties that support Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's centrist government were blocking the deal. But Mr. Singh took a bold risk to salvage the pact, trading communist support for that of a smaller regional party in hopes of assembling a new majority. Yesterday the gamble paid off, as Mr. Singh's government survived a parliamentary no-confidence vote. Now, the question is whether the pact can survive the American political process.

There isn't much time; under U.S. law, Congress must be in session continuously for 30 days to consider the deal. Before that clock can start, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group must give India a green light. While those approvals are likely, they won't happen instantaneously. And because of the long August recess, there may not be more than 30 "legislative days" left before Congress adjourns on Sept. 26. The deal raises many legitimate questions. But, on balance, it is in the United States' interest, and Congress should find the time to say yes -- in a lame-duck session after the November election, if necessary.

U.S. nuclear cooperation with India ceased when India, which had refused to sign the 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty, exploded a nuclear "device" in 1974. The sanctions were intended to show India, and the world, that there was a price to be paid for flouting the treaty. Times change, though, and the Bush administration's logic is that the benefits of a "strategic partnership" with India outweigh the risks of waiving the old rules. If booming India uses more nuclear energy, it will emit less in greenhouse gases. Unlike Pakistan, India has developed its nuclear arsenal without leaking materials or know-how to others. Perhaps the fact that India is a democracy that shares not only values but interests -- checking China, fighting Islamist terrorism -- with the United States matters more than its signature on a treaty. It's a bet worth making, especially since the agreement creates more international supervision of India's nuclear fuel cycle than there would be without it.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

To be sure, it is a risk. The deal weakens the U.S. threat to cut off uranium if India conducts another nuclear test. India's economic ties and military-to-military contacts with Iran are worrisome, as is its stubborn habit of taking "nonaligned" stances against U.S. interests. But the fact that Mr. Singh successfully ditched the communists for the sake of closer ties with Washington is a hopeful sign that the agreement is already inducing moderation. At this point, if Congress rejects the deal, the likeliest outcome -- in addition to much ill will in New Delhi -- is that India, freshly approved as a customer for technology and fuel by the IAEA and the Suppliers Group, will simply buy its planned 25,000 megawatts of nuclear capacity from France or Russia. After much delay, Mr. Singh has done his part; now it's Congress's turn.

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Ladoo-time in Amritsar as PM wins trust vote







Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

Good for Manmohan Singh...he has shown he has the GUTS.
BAD for the Akalis under Badal....they have shown they are slaves of BJP hindutva extremists
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323
when parties with just 3 votes bargained for and GOT what they wanted for their States..Badal with 8 didnt even bother to ASK...blindly parrotting the BJP BJP BJP slogan. Only One AKALI..showed his guts by abstaining...Historical opportunity to get Punajb Rights from Centre thrown away at BJP feet...aptly Shah muhammed has written..Ek "Sarkar " bajhon faujan jit ke antt nu harian ne...Punjab LOST.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

Gyani Jarnail Singh

Hindustan Times
Mumbai, July 23, 2008

Thackeray praises Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

The United Progressive Alliance government's victory in Tuesday's parliamentary trust vote has earned indirect approval from an unexpected quarter - Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray.


In an editorial in his newspaper Saamna Wednesday, Thackeray said that Prime Minister Manmohan is a Sikh, steeped in the best traditions of the community's reputation for bravery.

Sikhs never attack from behind but considering him as a weak PM, the opposition parties attacked him over the India-US nuclear deal.

However, Thackeray noted that Singh not only emerged victorious from the attack but also returned it with "interest" by proving his government's majority in the parliament.
The Sena chief said that the Left, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party and the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) got together with the single aim of toppling the government.

But now that the government has survived, these parties have been scattered. They are going their separate ways and they seen to have abandoned their intentions of the country's good.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323

Thackeray concluded "the country is not secure in the hands of such people" who believe that toppling the government and grabbing power is in the best interest of the nation.

"The whole country has witnessed this," he said.



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Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=22323
© Copyright 2007 Hindustan Times

What is the story about the PM? I hear words scattered about 'puppet', 'waiting in the background' etc.

Can anyone clear out the facts?