Lok Sabha Speaker election: Sanjay Raut offers INDIA bloc support to TDP; JD(U) backs 'BJP's right'

Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar, Samajwadi Party (SP) Chief Akhilesh Yadav and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed the INDIA bloc will support N Chandrababu Naidu's party TDP if it fields its candidate for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker. The remark comes on a day when Nitish Kumar's party, Janata Dal (United), said the right to nominate the Speaker of the lower house of the parliament rests with the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Sanjay Raut claimed TDP wants to field its candidate for the upcoming Speaker's election.

"I hear the TDP wants to field its candidate. If that happens, INDIA bloc partners will discuss the issue and will try to ensure that all the INDIA alliance partners extend support to the TDP," he said.

Raut claimed if BJP gets the Speaker's post, it will break its allies like TDP and JD(U).

"We have the experience that BJP betrays the people who support it," Raut claimed.

The BJP, which won 240 seats in the Lok Sabha, is dependent on TDP and JD(U) for a simple majority in the house.

With 16 and 12 Lok Sabha seats, N Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar's parties have emerged as the proverbial kingmakers.

Cognizant of the new reality, the Bharatiya Janata Party ensured better representation of its allies in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new Cabinet. However, the four main portfolio's -- home, defence, finance and external affairs -- were allocated to BJP leaders.

Almost all the other key posts were also allocated to BJP MPs.

While TDP has demanded that the nominee for the Speaker's post be decided by the National Democratic Alliance partners after achieving a consensus, JD(U) has vowed to back the Bharatiya Janata Party's decision.

"The position of a Lok Sabha Speaker is the most dignified post of the House... The ruling party has the first right on that seat. The demands and statements of the INDI alliance are objectionable. BJP or NDA have first right on that post. We believe that BJP is the big party of the NDA... I have been in NDA for the last 35 years... BJP never tried to break any party... TDP and JDU played a crucial role. We will never try to weaken the NDA," said JD(U) leader KC Tyagi.

With inputs from PTI, ANI

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