Thumbs up, fingers crossed

New Delhi, July 21: Ten hours into the make-or-break debate on the Indo-US nuclear deal in the Lok Sabha on Monday, the first signs of pressure easing were visible in the Treasury Benches: Congress President Sonia Gandhi thumped the desk at least 20 times, sometimes with both hands, to egg on her speakers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh prodded on MoS Anand Sharma as he sought to nail down the Opposition on the Kandahar hijack and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee often broke out in smiles and laughter.

Crisis managers of the Congress claimed the government had the “assured” support of 276-277 MPs for the trust vote tomorrow and they hoped the figure would go beyond 280. However, no one was willing to spell out the arithmetic behind such a claim.

Until Monday evening, there were only 266 MPs who had pledged support to the UPA, including Somabhai Patel, BJP MP from Gujarat, who declared his support today.

The ruling camp’s hopes apparently hinge on the success of their “plan” to engineer abstentions and last-minute defections. So far, they were “positive” about six BJP MPs, four Shiv Sena MPs and three Shiromani Akali Dal MPs — the last six had almost fallen into their lap with the MPs concerned approaching Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi. But their demands were unending — and so uncertainty continued.

Both the Opposition and the Congress, in the meantime, are working frantically over potential defectors. While talks with the Shiv Sena MPs were on, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi spent hours in the visitors’ gallery in the Lok Sabha.

Apprehensive of last-minute slips — Sonia Gandhi’s infamous “272 episode” in 1999 is a constant reminder — the ruling side was still keeping its channels open with the JD(S) and the RLD even though both these parties have already pledged their support to the Mayawati-led Third Alternative.

The ruling side felt that former Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, unlike his father HD Deve Gowda, was inclined to tie up with the UPA and the ruling party crisis managers were seeking to exploit the rift. Both the JD(S) and the RLD, however, vehemently denied any change of heart.

Meanwhile, BSP camp managers, led by part chief Mayawati, who was in the capital today, worked overtime to attract few more MPs from the ruling camp, including some from the SP. She hosted a dinner for party MPs today. Rebel Congress MP from Karnal Arvind Sharma also called on her today.

SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, who watched the debate in the Lok Sabha sitting in the visitors’ gallery, was learnt to have met rebel party MPs today in a bid to win at least some of them back. After Mulayam’s talks with party MPs and rebels, SP sources said that the party got a “positive response” from some rebels but declined to give any names.

Sources said the SP leadership is also learnt to have contacted some BSP MPs to consider voting for the government. They said talks were on with MPs with whom the party had been in contact over the last few days. However, while the party hoped a positive response from at least one BSP MP, it declined to confirm it.

Meanwhile, BSP’s Rajya Sabha MP and party general secretary S C Mishra along with Akhilesh Das were spotted in the Central Hall of Parliament. They were learnt to have touched base with some ruling party MPs, including from the SP. Atiq Ahmed, of the SP, brought from the jail for the session, was found sitting with BSP MP Akbar Ahmed ‘Dumpy’.