''NDA will defeat the UPA Confidence Vote in Lok Sabha'': BJP

New Delhi, Jul 15 (UNI) Claiming that the NDA allies were united to defeat the July 22 trust vote of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's UPA government, the BJP today accused the Congress of misusing its machinery by luring MPs to win a majority in the Lok Sabha.

Deputy Leader of the BJP in Lok Sabha Vijay Kumar Malhotra and BJP spokesman Ravishankar Prasad in a joint press conference said,''the Congress should realise that no effort would help save its tottering government. The Government is bound to lose the trust vote on July 22.'' Mr Malhotra alleged that the Congress in its desperation to win the confidence vote was offering a huge amount of money to lure the MPs and the BJP would want a high-level probe into the allegations, he said. Whatever they do, their numbers will not touch the magical majority figure, he commented.

At the same time, he said the BJP was in touch with many independents and Congress party members, who were opposed to the Indo-US civil nuclear deal to ensure the defeat of the Government.

The core group of BJP consisting of senior leaders were regularly holding meetings to chalk out the strategy for voting.

We are sure the UPA is going to lose its majority and the BJP and the NDA would do everything to defeat the government which had done nothing to help the farmers and common man to overcome the probelms of price rise, inflation, farmer suicides and fertiliser shortage. The Congress came to power promising to ''take the common man holding his hands'' but it was now in league with the industrial titans, he said pointing to the meetings taking place between the Prime Minister and corporate bigwigs.

The nuclear deal sought to be imposed on the country is not in the national interest and sooner the government goes out of power, the better it is for the country and the common man, he said.

As far as the NDA was concerned, the BJP and other constituent parties had issued separate whips to its MPs to be present in Delhi on July 20th evening to attend the dinner meeting convened by Leader of the Opposition L K Advani ahead of the commencement of the Special Session.

The parties which had issued whips to its MPs were Janata Dal (United), Akali Dal, Shiv Sena and Biju Janata Dal. Mr Prasad said a meeting of the NDA Chief Ministers has been convened for July 17 to discuss the issue.

UNI MCN KAS ARB HT1720