NDA meeting: LS speaker post to cabinet berths, here's what each NDA ally is eyeing in Modi govt 3.0
NDA meeting: LS speaker post to cabinet berths, here's what each NDA ally is eyeing in Modi govt 3.0
Even though the President is yet to formally invite the NDA for government formation, BJP's allies have started demanding their share of the pie in the new government.
The NDA allies have their checklists ready for the BJP ahead of the government formation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) parties to chalk out the details of government formation apart from deliberating on the Lok Sabha Election Results 2024.From the BJP, Amit Shah, JP Nadda and Rajnath Singh were present in the meeting.
NDA partners, including Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu, Janata Dal (United) supremo and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy, Shiv Sena head and Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde, as well as Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan were also present during this meeting.
In the Lok Sabha elections 2024, the BJP failed to get to the majority mark on its own. The saffron party got 240 seats and was pushed by its allies including TDP, JDU and Shiv Sena to the 293 mark. Even though the President is yet to formally invite the NDA for government formation, BJP's allies have started demanding their share of the pie in the new government.
Here's what BJP's partners are looking to get in NDA 3.0:
TDP: The Chandrababu Naidu-led regional satrap is eyeing for the Lok Sabha Speaker's post in the new government. The TDP is also looking at 7-8 Cabinet berths and 1 MoS portfolio. These include Road Transport, Rural Development, Health, Housing & Urban Affairs, Agriculture, Jal Shakti, IT & Comms, Education and Finance (MoS), as per sources.
JD(U): The JD(U), led by Nitish Kumar, has reportedly demanded 3 Cabinet berths.
Shiv Sena: The BJP ally extended its support to Prime Minister Modi but has sought 1 Cabinet and 2 MoS posts in the NDA 3.0 government. Shiv Sena won 7 seats in the Lok Sabha and is being seen as a crucial ally of the BJP at the Centre.
NCP: The NCP Ajit Pawar faction, despite winning one out of the four seats it contested on, is expecting an MoS berth in the Union cabinet.
JD(S): The BJP's Karnataka ally, which helped the saffron party solidify its presence in the Vokkaliga bastions, is also eyeing a post in the NDA government. JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy has hinted that his party was interested in getting the Agriculture portfolio in the new government.
LJP (Ram Vilas): The Chirag Paswan-led party is expected to ask for one Cabinet and one MoS post in the next NDA government.
HAM(S): Hindustani Awam Morcha chief and former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi is eyeing a Cabinet post in the new government.