No-confidence motion: 'India watching us closely', PM urges MPs to rise to the occasion

New Delhi, July 10: A few hours ahead of no-confidence motion to be taken up at the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged his fellow Members of Parliament to "rise to the occasion" and ensure a constructive, comprehensive and disruption free debate.

He took to Twitter to express his views on 'Parliamentary democracy'.

"Today is an important day in our Parliamentary democracy. I am sure my fellow MP colleagues will rise to the occasion and ensure a constructive, comprehensive and disruption free debate. We owe this to the people and the makers of our Constitution. India will be watching us closely," he wrote.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) will initiate the debate on no-confidence in the Lok Sabha as it is the main mover of the motion against the government.

TDP has been allocated 13 minutes by the speaker. Jaydev Galla will be the first speaker of the party, followed by Rammohan Naidu. Congress, the main opposition party, has been allocated 38 minutes to present its views on the motion. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and the leader of the party in the House, Mallikarjun Kharge, are likely to speak on it.

Other opposition parties such as the AIADMK, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) have been allocated 29 minutes, 27 minutes, 15 minutes and nine minutes respectively. The ruling BJP, which enjoys a majority in the House, has been given 3 hours and 33 minutes in the debate, which is scheduled for seven hours.

The NDA has about 312 members in the 533-member house. The majority mark, however, stands at 267 as 11 seats are vacant. The Congress and the other parties that support the no-trust motion have about 152 seats.