July 18, 2008	Friday	Rajab 14, 1429

NEW DELHI, July 17: A strong appeal on Thursday by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi was expected to boost the Indian government’s chance of winning a trust vote next week, but its survival largely depends on half a dozen convicted and jailed MPs who are being especially freed to cast their make-or-break votes.

Mrs Gandhi was addressing her first public rally since left wing parties withdrew support for the government because of opposition to a nuclear deal with the United States. She said it would help give India energy security in years to come and she dismissed accusations that the Congress party is selling out India’s national interest.

“Let me state before you, let me state before the whole country categorically; there is no question, there is no question of compromising on our security, on our nuclear programme and on our independence in foreign policy,” she said.

The government has been forced to seek a confidence vote over the issue in parliament next week. The accord would give India an access to US civilian nuclear technology.

Six members of parliament in prison will be allowed out to participate in the debate and the Indian cabinet has approved a proposal to rename an airport after the father of the leader of one small party which is being wooed by both camps. Analysts said that though it looked like a safe bet that the government would survive the confidence vote, the margins are getting smaller all the time.

Two jailed MPs, whose parties are constituents of the ruling United Progressive Alliance, were on Wednesday allowed by the Patna High Court to take part in the trust vote in Lok Sabha, giving some relief to the Manmohan Singh government.

A division bench granted Rashtriya Janata Dal MP from Siwan, Mohammad Shahabuddin, and Lok Janshakti Party MP from Balia, Surajbhan Singh, permission to go to New Delhi for the July 22 confidence vote. Both are serving life terms in separate criminal cases.

On Tuesday, Atiq Ahmed, facing trial in a number of criminal cases in Uttar Pradesh, was permitted by an Allahabad court to take part in the voting.

Ahmed, an MP from Phoolpur, was expelled by Samajwadi Party for anti-party activities and has kept all options open saying “everything is possible in politics”. He is being wooed by both Congress as well as the BSP, which has decided to vote against the government.

The UPA is pulling all stops to ensure that five MPs, currently lodged in various jails and who are expected to back the government, are in Delhi in time for the voting.

Press Trust of India said two other jailed MPs who could support the government are Pappu Yadav (RJD) and Afzal Ansari of Samajwadi Party. There is no word yet on these two MPs whether they are moving courts to get bail to take part in voting.

Another MP in jail is Umakant Yadav of the Bahujan Samaj Party.

The court allowed Shahabuddin, serving life term in connection with the kidnapping and suspected murder of a CPI-ML activist Chotelal Gupta in 1999, to leave for New Delhi on July 20 and remain there for two days till July 22.It directed Shahabuddin to return to Bihar by July 23 and bear the travel expenses of him and the accompanying policemen. Shahabuddin had been earlier granted permission by the court to take part in the last presidential election.

Earlier in the day, the same bench granted bail to Surajbhan Singh despite stiff opposition by the prosecution.

Surajbhan, along with two of his associates, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a farmer, by a fast track court of Begusarai on June 25. Opposition MPs have claimed that the government was offering Rs250 million each to independent MPs who may tip the balance. The government has denied the charge.

Lucknow’s Amausi Airport will now be named after former prime minister Chaudhury Charan Singh as part of the deal with his son who commands a clutch of MPs, news report said. Corporate heads have also figured in the hard negotiations surrounding the trust vote, reports say.