If BJP keeps Speaker post, TDP and JD(U) should be ready to see horse-trading of MPs: Ashok Gehlot
Jaipur, Jun 12: Former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot alleged Wednesday that if BJP keeps the Lok Sabha Speaker post, its alliance partners TDP and JD(U) should be prepared to witness horse-trading of their MPs.
If the BJP does not have the intention to do anything undemocratic in the future, it should give the Speaker's post to one of its allies, the Congress leader said.
Following the principle of coalition, during the former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's government from 1998 to 2004, the Speaker was from the TDP and the Shiv Sena and in the UPA government from 2004 to 2009, the Speaker was from the CPI(M) and the Lok Sabha was managed well, he said.
"Not just TDP and JD(U), but the people of the entire country are eagerly watching the election to the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker. If BJP does not have the intention to do anything undemocratic in the future, it should give the Speaker's post to one of its allies," Gehlot said in Hindi on 'X'.
"TDP and JD(U) should not forget the conspiracies hatched by the BJP to topple governments in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Rajasthan. In many of these states, the government fell and parties split due to the role played by the Speaker," he added.
Gehlot said that in 2019, four out of six Rajya Sabha MPs of the TDP joined the BJP and the party could do nothing.
"Now if the BJP keeps the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker with itself, the TDP and JD(U) should be ready to see horse-trading of their MPs," he added.
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Jaishankar meets European, UK, Egyptian counterparts at UAE summit
Dubai (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has met with his counterparts from Europe, the UK and Egypt on the sidelines of a high-level international summit in the United Arab Emirates, where leaders and policymakers gathered to discuss key geopolitical and security challenges.
In a social media post on Saturday, Jaishankar said "it was great to be" with Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel, Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, and Latvia’s Foreign Minister Baiba Braze.
The minister was in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi to attend the three-day Sir Bani Yas Forum 2025, which concluded on Sunday.
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Jaishankar also met UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy on the sidelines of the summit.
"Good to see UK DPM @DavidLammy on the sidelines of Sir Bani Yas Forum 2025," he said in another social media post.
In another meeting, the External Affairs Minister said it was “nice to catch up” with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Dr Badr Abdelatty.
Sir Bani Yas Forum is an annual platform that brings together global leaders, ministers and experts to deliberate on regional and international issues.
