by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

400 top officers sent packing under Modi

Nearly 400 senior officers in the Central service have either been compulsorily retired or decided to opt for voluntary retirement during the past eight years under Modi dispensation. These officers in senior positions in the government quit due to a variety of reasons between July 2014 to June 2022 which is a record of sorts. This is despite the fact that there is a huge shortage of officers at the senior levels as states are not relieving officers due to their own compulsions. 

As per official sources in the Ministry of Personnel, as many as 203 officers falling in Group A and 192 in Group-B categories have prematurely been sacked or allowed to seek voluntary retirement during this period.

 

This is the highest-ever number of senior officers going out of the service and the government is finding it difficult to fill the growing vacuum at the senior level. It even  opened the Lateral Entrant route at the level of Director and above. But later, this option slowed down as this was not a permanent solution to meet the shortage of officers. The UPSC, the nodal agency for recruitment of grade A, B & C posts, has decided to accelerate the process of filling up thousands of vacancies.

It may be mentioned that Group-A officers comprise from the elite IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS etc while Group-B consists a step junior in service.

The DOPT said the government is vested with the absolute power to pre-maturely retire the government servants in public interest by invoking the provisions of service Rules – 56 (j). The government employees may seek retirement from service by opting for voluntary retirement with the permission of the government. It is said that many such officers under scanners are allowed to opt for this route too as evidence against them is weak.  

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

After Big SC Win, ED's twin challenges

Solving thousands of cases with 40% staff crunch

23 convicted in 20 years only

After the SC verdict upholding the constitutional validity of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the Enforcement Directorate's big challenge is to conclude investigation into thousands of pending cases under the PMLA & FEMA.

This is at a time when the ED is facing a huge shortage of staff. According to a 2020 report, the ED was facing a shortage of as much as 40%. Independent observers say that the ED's track record in obtaining convictions after issuing summons to suspects, conducting raids and attaching assets, is extremely disappointing.

According to a reply given in the Lok Sabha recently, the ED could obtain convictions only in 23 cases under the PMLA ever since the act came into being in 2002 after what was called “draconian FERA”. Incidentally, P Chidambaram who stoutly defended PMLA as Finance Minister in 2012, is himself facing the ED heat along with his Lok Sabha MP son, Karti Chidambaram.

Apart from Chidambaram, ED is probing a large number of high profile cases involving several sitting and former Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, Mps and MLAs and business houses across India. It may be mentioned that the trial in many of these cases had almost come to a grinding halt after more than 200 petitions were filed in the SC challenging many provisions, dealing with its powers to arrest, search and seizure.

After getting unbridled power from the SC, the ED is left with no excuse but to fast-track all pending cases. It may be mentioned that ED is functioning with 40% strength of its total sanctioned staff capacity of 2,064. Officially, the ED says it initiated investigations into 30716 cases and disposed of 15495 of them reflecting huge pendency.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly on the Wall

The Maratha warrior rising again

 

 

The Maratha warrior has decided to fight another battle with the mighty BJP. Though he is aging he refuses to give up. Unruffled by the fall of the MVA government,  81-year-old Sharad Pawar is gearing up to fight another battle with the ruling BJP. He has told his party cadre that mega rallies will be held across Maharashtra against the BJP which has been pulling down elected governments in states after states by misuse of central agencies and horse-trading. In a series of meetings here and in Maharashtra, Pawar has said he will extensively tour the state and can’t be cowed down by the CBI, ED and Income-Tax who have unleashed a raid-raj in the country. Sharad Pawar is also talking to the Congress leadership and Uddhav Thackery to join this struggle to counter the BJP. “It’s time to give a united fight to the BJP,” Pawar told senior Congress leaders. The Congress, as usual, will take its sweet time. Uddhav Thackeray who has been fighting with the Shinde faction with his back-to-the-wall, is ready for this battle too. Final touches are being given to the plan.

 

 

Margret’s Rs 15000 offer

 

Margret Alva, Opposition’s Vice Presidential candidate, had moments of laughter even on the face of a defeat at the hands of the NDA nominee Jagdeep Dhankhar. While filing nomination, one of the Opposition leaders suggested that a security deposit of Rs 15000 be better paid in cash. Alva quipped, “I have brought Rs 15000 cash” showing her purse. Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge responded, “No worries… we will deposit.” Praful Patel jokingly said, “Allow Kharge ji to deposit the money….otherwise you will have to travel to Delhi once again to reclaim the deposit after the polls.”  There was big laughter in the room. A candidate gets back the deposit if he/she secures more than 15% of polled votes. 

 

No FIR is a Concession

 

When an upset UP PWD Minister Jitin Prasada rushed to Delhi to complain to the party high command over the removal of his OSD by Chief Minister Yogi, someone at the top gave him a pep talk. “You are new to the BJP, learn to live with leaders like Yogi. You were given a plum department like PWD in the first shot. But it seems your OSD forgot that there is Zero tolerance towards corruption under the Yogi regime.” Poor Jitin Prasada returned to Lucknow as there was no one to talk to him at his bidding.  When a senior leader contacted the CM on the phone about it, Yogi is reported to have said, “I have already given him one concession…. No FIR registered against the OSD.” The matter was closed. This was in contrast to the treatment given to junior UP Minister Dinesh Khatik who had sent his resignation letter to Amit Shah, not the Chief Minister. This was a signal that something is amiss between Lucknow and Delhi. However, Khatik was given an audience by BJP Chief J P Nadda and not by Shah. Khatik met Yogi later in the presence of his senior Minister Swatradev Singh with whom he had a running battle. The matter was sorted out. Prasada should better watch out why he was not given an audience! Loyalty counts. 

  

Winds of Change blowing in MP

 

The BJP may be on a high horse after it dislodged the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh. But its electoral arithmetic is not working. Warning bells are ringing in BJP headquarters after the party suffered a humiliating defeat in local bodies’ elections in MP. The outcome may not have made national headlines due to a variety of reasons. But it has shaken Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to the core and he is on a shaky wicket as Assembly polls are 15 month away. The shocker came as the BJP lost the Morena Municipal Corporation election for the first time since its creation. Similarly, the  BJP also lost the Gwalior Mayoral poll for the first time in 57 years. Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and several senior state leaders belong to the region. Incidentally, 15 of the Congress MLAs who quit the Congress to join the BJP and pulled down the Kamal Nath government, belong to this region. When Scindia joined BJP in 2020, the party had claimed that Gwalior-Chambal would be “Congress-Mukt”. But the results came as a huge setback to Chouhan,  Scindia and other BJP leaders. These are also worrying for Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar who is  Lok Sabha MP from Morena. 

 

 

 Calmer comfort

The out-going Vice President, M Venkaiah Naidu has decided to shift to 1 Tyagraja Marg instead of 5 Safdarjung Road as his new abode. The change came as Safdarjung Road turned out to be too noisy for him while Tyagraj Marg is slightly calmer.   

 

 

 

 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

3787 IT raids in five years result in 29 convictions 

18 cases saw acquittals, Rs 5890 Cr assets seized

Strange it may sound but true. The Income Tax department undertook search & seizure operations on as many as 3787 groups during the past five years across the country. It launched prosecution in only 50% of cases, 1956 to be precise. But this is not all.

The department could obtain convictions only in 29 cases between April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2022. And this is not all. In 18 cases the acquittal orders were passed by courts during the same five year period.

The figures disclosed officially by the Union Finance Ministry gave an insight into the outcome of the five years vigorous pursuit of fight against corruption and concealment of income by corporate and groups.

For example, during 2017-18 the IT department launched prosecution in 560 cases and obtained conviction in 23 cases. But next year, it drew a big zero after launching prosecution against 771 entities. Rather, 5 acquittals were given. The number continued to fall thereafter in which prosecution cases were launched. In 2019-20, prosecutions were launched against 365 companies while next year saw a huge dip with 145 and 2021-22 saw further downward journey with 115 cases.

There are as many as 6899 cases still pending as on March 31, 2022. Of course, the IT department seized assets worth Rs 5890 crores during the past five years.

The government gave this information in response to a question in Rajya Sabha asked by Digvijay Singh.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

 Tussle for control of the Narcotics Control Bureau

Home Ministry wants NCB NDPS under its control

Finance Ministry has its own views

 

 

It’s official now. What was being whispered in the corridors of powers till now is official. The Union Home ministry under Amit Shah is keen that the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) currently under the Finance ministry be transferred to it.

The matter has been engaging the attention of the Union Government for the past several years but no decision was taken. However, no one had commented on it ealier. The Drug controlling regulatory body has been under the Finance ministry. Now the Union Home ministry wants NDPS to be brought under its control for better control of the menace and coordination.

Surprisingly, the cat was out of the bag today in the Lok Sabha when the Union Finance ministry replied, “The matter is under discussion and no decision has been taken yet.”

The response came when a question was asked by the BJP Lok Sabha MP Sushil Kumar Singh, “whether there is any proposal of shifting the administration of NDPS Act to the Ministry of Home Affairs”.

The Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Choudhary replied that the NDP Act 1985 was framed while amalgamating three central acts which were earlier administered by the Ministry of Finance viz. the Opium Act, 1857, the Opium Act, 1878 and the Drug Dangerous Act, 1930. The Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance has been functioning as the Nodal Department in the field of Drug Administration since beginning.”  It transpires that the matter is currently pending in South Block housing the Cabinet Secretariat and the PMO. 

 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

BJP to hold  welcome rallies for Murmu to sway 109 Lok Sabha seats 

The BJP is contemplating to hold mega welcome programs across the country particularly in the tribal dominated states for the President, Draupadi Murmu as part of its tribal outreach program. While the immediate focus would be four major poll bound states of Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, Murmu will be given rousing reception in her home state of Odisha and neighbouring Jharkhand too. The celebrations will begin from day soon and may continue until the Lok Sabha polls in 2024. There are 109 Lok Sabha constituencies spread over 12 states including West Bengal, North East and North India.

The BJP's Scheduled Tribes Morcha is already planning “Abhinandan Yatras” (Welcome rallies) to encash politically installing India's first tribal woman President. It did not do so in 2017 when Ramnath Kovind and M Venkaiah Naidu were elected as President and Vice President respectively. But Murmu is on a different pedestal and may help the BJP cross 350 Lok Sabha seats mark. The party managers are taking full precautions not to send a signal either that they are misusing the office of the President for political gains. The ST morcha will hold welcome rallies across India. A model is being evolved as to how the President, Murmu may grace the welcome functions. Gujarat has a tribal population of around 15 per cent with 27 Assembly seats while Chhattisgarh has 30% votes with 29 seats. If MP has 21% and 47 seats, Rajasthan has 14% votes with 25 seats. The BJP approached all tribal Mps and MLAs, irrespective of parties, to solicit support for Murmu and cross-voting was also witnessed. Droupadi Murmu hails from Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district where BJP has already decimated the Congress to emerge as principal Opposition party.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

The Dhankhar Selection mystery

Contrary to popular perception that West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar was told by the Prime Minister on July 16 when he called on him at the PM office is completely misplaced. In fact, it was Dhankar who had sought prior appointment with the Union Home Minister, Amit Shah and also with the PM. He had sought the meeting as he was coming to attend Governors' customary  dinner with the out-going President, Ramnath Kovind. He wanted to meet both the leaders to apprise them of the prevailing situation in West Bengal. When Dhankhar called on Modi, the entire discussion was confined to West Bengal only. Dhankhar was not given any clue either by Shah or Modi that he is going to be picked for the VP's job in the evening. Though Dhankhar's name had started doing the rounds in social media immediately after photographs of his meeting with the PM were posted on twitter by the PMO, he had no clue. Dhankhar was at the dinner table at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in the evening when he received several missed calls and messages on his mobile phone. Since it was a dinner engagement, he could neither  take the calls nor look into messages. But an Orderly of the Rashtrapati Bhawan walked up to his seat and whispered that there is a message in his phone. Dhankhar later confirmed to this writer that he got to know about his candidature at the dinner in Rashtrapati Bhawan only. A highly senior leader of the BJP said that the PM is a stickler to the protocol and known for keeping things to himself till the end. If he had disclosed to Dhankhar his name for Vice President's post earlier, the meeting of the BJP Parliamentary Board consisting of top leaders would have become redundant. It was BJP president JP Nadda who told the board that he had received three names for the VP's post and let the board decide. Rest is history.

 

BJP's Big ambitions for 2024

 

Modi may be BJP’s triumph card for winning elections after elections since 2014. But even then the party machinery is working round the clock to fix nuts & bolts to ensure more and more states are brought under the saffron flag. It may be converting defeat into victory in some states by resorting to unfair practices to achieve the target. But that’s the New BJP. However, those working behind the scenes (read RSS here), tell a different story. The New BJP is promoting Martial Race in states wherever necessary. If it is keeping Thakurs as Chief Ministers in UP, Uttarakhand and Himachal it is retaining Rajnath Singh as number two in the Union Cabinet. If the party brought a Patidar in Gujarat, it installed a Maratha as CM in Maharashtra. Eknath Shinde was brought to cut Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray to size at the cost of its own most trusted leader Devendra Fadnavis. It is keeping Shivraj Singh Chouhan as CM to keep OBCs in good humour. But Jyotiraditya Scindia and Narendra Singh Tomar are Union Cabinet Ministers to woo the Rajputs. The BJP badly needs a senior Jat leader to help it in Haryana, Rajasthan and parts of UP. It installed Jagdeep Dhankar as VP to woo the Jats who is the first Jat in 75 years of India's history to don the mantle. In Haryana, it already has Dushant Chautala, a Jat leader as Deputy CM. In order to woo the Tribal in 109 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and other states, it brought the first Tribal woman as President. Thus, the BJP’s think-tank is working tirelessly for 2024.

 

Gehlot's Nashik nightmare

 

With the change of regime in Maharashtra, fortune of many leaders may also change. It transpires that a police case in Nashik against Vaibhav Gehlot, son of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, may witness some interesting twists and turns. The case came to light when a businessman in Nashik got a case of Rs 6.89 crores cheating registered against Vaibhav Gehlot and 13 others in March this year. But the Police under the MVA government was reluctant to register the case and the businessman approached the court. The court directed the Police to register an FIR. The case was transferred to the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW). Within days, the complainant approached the court saying he would not like to pursue the case against Vaibhav Gehlot . But the court did not proceed with as much alacrity as the complainant. In the meantime, the Uddhav Thackeray government fell and obviously, Gehlots may witness some turbulence. All eyes are on the Nashik complainant whether he changes his tune after the change of regime in Maharashtra. Ashok Gehlot’s  brother Agrasen Gehlot had been raided by the CBI in June and the Chief Minister is having sleepless nights.

 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Pawar eyes UPA Chair now

After losing his bastion in Maharashtra, the Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar may now eye the UPA chairmanship in Delhi. For the Opposition parties in Delhi, Pawar is a tall leader and Congress president Sonia Gandhi has already requested him to coordinate with all like-minded parties.  Pawar played a key role in the selection of the Opposition's joint presidential candidate. The buzz in Delhi is that Sonia Gandhi wants to relinquish the post of Congress president. Therefore, Pawar is eyeing the post of the UPA chairman hoping that Sonia may quit that post too. Insiders in the Congress say that Sonia Gandhi had sounded Pawar to become the Convener of the UPA to begin with. Pawar has not agreed as his heart remains in Maharashtra though he is playing an active role in coordinating with the Opposition parties in key matters. With Parliament’s Monsoon session beginning, Pawar may play a major role in Delhi rather than in Mumbai. However, senior NCP leaders in Maharashtra are insisting that he should continue to guide the MVA affairs. After all, it was he who was running the government as a back-seat driver for more than two years. But the Congress in Maharashtra under Nana Patole is unwilling to accept him as the leader and Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray is in tatters. Ajit Pawar as Leader of the Opposition is firmly in the saddle and will assert his authority too. He has no love-lost with Jayant Patil either who is a die-hard Pawar loyalist.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Naidu to shift in Naqvi’s bungalow at Safdarjung Road

 

 

Even as speculations about the next destination of Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi continue with each passing day, the out-going Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu will be shifting to the ministerial bungalow of former Minority Affairs Minister.

 

 

Naidu has decided to stay put in Delhi after retirement next month and shift to 5, Safdarjung Road bungalow currently occupied by Naqvi. Incidentally, Naqvi had partially vacated the bungalow and shifted to his Mayur Vihar flat in East Delhi. A ministerial Type-VIII bungalow is allotted to former Presidents and Vice Presidents and former PM for life in Delhi or a place of their choice in India by the government.

 

Though there was intense speculation that Naqvi may be nominated for the post of VP, it did not happen for a variety of reasons. It is said that Naqvi may be given a gubernatorial assignment. The governors of several states are retiring within the next two months. Jagdeep Dhankhar, West Bengal Governor who has been made a Vice Presidential candidate is set to quit his current assignment soon. 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group



Fly on the Wall 

Pawar eyes UPA Chair now

After losing his bastion in Maharashtra, the Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar may now eye the UPA chairmanship in Delhi. For the Opposition parties in Delhi, Pawar is a tall leader and Congress president Sonia Gandhi has already requested him to coordinate with all like-minded parties.  Pawar played a key role in the selection of the Opposition's joint presidential candidate. The buzz in Delhi is that Sonia Gandhi wants to relinquish the post of Congress president. Therefore, Pawar is eyeing the post of the UPA chairman hoping that Sonia may quit that post too. Insiders in the Congress say that Sonia Gandhi had sounded Pawar to become the Convener of the UPA to begin with. Pawar has not agreed as his heart remains in Maharashtra though he is playing an active role in coordinating with the Opposition parties in key matters. With Parliament’s Monsoon session beginning, Pawar may play a major role in Delhi rather than in Mumbai. However, senior NCP leaders in Maharashtra are insisting that he should continue to guide the MVA affairs. After all, it was he who was running the government as a back-seat driver for more than two years. But the Congress in Maharashtra under Nana Patole is unwilling to accept him as the leader and Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray is in tatters. Ajit Pawar as Leader of the Opposition is firmly in the saddle and will assert his authority too. He has no love-lost with Jayant Patil either who is a die-hard Pawar loyalist.

BJP's scouting mission in Maharashtra

The BJP is desperately on the look out for a strong Maratha leader from the Congress among other MLAs to enhance its base before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. It is not interested in wooing the 15-odd MLAs belonging to the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray as it considers it an internal Sena matter. However, the BJP wants to weaken Congress further not only in other states but also in Maharashtra and wean away strong regional leaders. The BJP needs a Maratha leader in its kitty and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is in a mission mode. The Congress high command is aware of the move as this leader's name did figure in the list of seven absentees who cross voted and also failed to turn up in time for the Confidence vote. The Congress high command has ordered a probe under Congress leader Mohan Prakash. But insiders say that it's an eye-wash as the high command knew the identity of this leader. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan told Lokmat that it's time for action against the erring MLAs. He disclosed that the high command had taken the services of an expert from England before the voting in the Rajya Sabha biennial polls and a special code was created for each of the party MLAs. "The high command knows who didn't vote due to this code," he said. Therefore, the party should act against them rather than ordering an inquiry. Ashok Chavan, Vijay Wadettiwar, Dheeraj Deshmukh,   Zishan Siddiqui, Raju Awale, Mohan Hambarde, Madhav Rao Jawalgaonkar and Shirish Chaudhari were late for voting too during the Confidence vote. Out of these 8 MLAs, seven cross voted for the Rajya Sabha polls. Three MLAs had taken prior permission to remain absent.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly On the Wall 

July 14

Who were 20 Presidential candidates!

On June 21, BJP president JP Nadda told the nation that the party has chosen Draupadi Murmu as its Presidential candidate. He went on to disclose that the party considered 20 names for the post and she was chosen amongst them. However, he left the country guessing about the remaining 19 names considered at the Parliamentary Board's meeting. It transpires that the top BJP leadership considered 19 other names which included Parkash Singh Badal, former Punjab Chief Minister and a tall Sikh leader. PM Modi once called him Nelson Mandela of India. It so happened that the Akali Dal leaders reached out to the BJP reminding it that it had been indicated in 2014 that Badal senior could be considered for the top post. When asked who had given them such a commitment, they named a late senior leader who is no more. The matter ended there.The name of a former Chief Justice of India was also considered who may have been signaled once that he could be considered for a Constitutional post. Telangana Governor Tamilsai Sundarajan and three other tribal women leaders were also considered.  Former Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao who hails from Telangana too figured among those considered. The names of  many Governors including that of Thaawarchand Gehlot and Kalraj Mishra were also mentioned considering their wide experience.

 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly On the Wall July 14

Who were 20 Presidential candidates!

On June 21, BJP president JP Nadda told the nation that the party has chosen Draupadi Murmu as its Presidential candidate. He went on to disclose that the party considered 20 names for the post and she was chosen amongst them. However, he left the country guessing about the remaining 19 names considered at the Parliamentary Board's meeting. It transpires that the top BJP leadership considered 19 other names which included Parkash Singh Badal, former Punjab Chief Minister and a tall Sikh leader. PM Modi once called him Nelson Mandela of India. It so happened that the Akali Dal leaders reached out to the BJP reminding it that it had been indicated in 2014 that Badal senior could be considered for the top post. When asked who had given them such a commitment, they named a late senior leader who is no more. The matter ended there.The name of a former Chief Justice of India was also considered who may have been signaled once that he could be considered for a Constitutional post. Telangana Governor Tamilsai Sundarajan and three other tribal women leaders were also considered.  Former Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao who hails from Telangana too figured among those considered. The names of  many Governors including that of Thaawarchand Gehlot and Kalraj Mishra were also mentioned considering their wide experience.

Uddhav Thackeray relents, speaks to Yashwant Sinha, No support yet

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Uddhav Thackeray relents, speaks to Yashwant Sinha, No support yet

Sinha visiting Mumbai on July 17

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, July 8

All eyes are set on Maharashtra on July 17 when joint Opposition presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha visits Mumbai to solicit support. While the NCP and Congress have committed their support to Sinha, the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray has been dragging its feet in announcing support after his government fell.

Sources said that Sinha was trying hard to speak to Uddhav Thackeray over the phone. But Uddhav was extremely busy due to a variety of reasons. It is said that many of his Mps and remaining 14-15 MLAs do not want to be seen to be opposing first Tribal presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu. Uddhav Thackeray, however, spoke to Sinha yesterday.

Sanjay Raut, a senior Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP, confirmed to Lokmat today that Sinha spoke to Uddhav Thackeray. “However, we will decide in the next couple of days on the issue of Sinha,” Raut disclosed. Though no whip can be issued to the party MLAs and Mps. But the party has to decide on the issue in the wake of fresh developments.

There are apprehensions that Murmu may get the support of more than 180 MLAs out of 287 member Maharashtra Assembly. Each MLA has 175 votes and all MLAs account for 50,225 votes. The BJP-Sena (Shinde group) has the support of 165 MLAs. But there is a likelihood of more MLAs voting for Murmu.

Similarly, each MP has 708 votes. Though no formal division in the 19-member Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party in Lok Sabha has taken place. But there is a possibility that many of them may vote for Murmu too.