JVM-P withdraws support to UPA

NEW DELHI, Oct 1 (Agencies): Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government suffered a minor setback Monday with the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajatantrik (JVM-P), which has two Lok Sabha MPs, announcing that it was withdrawing support over the decision to permit FDI in multi-brand retail.

"We are withdrawing support to the Manmohan Singh government," JVM-P general secretary Pradeep Yadav told the media in Ranchi.

The Congress played down the move, saying it would not affect the stability of the government.

"The UPA government is stable... We still have the support of 305 MPs in the Lok Sabha," Congress general secretary in charge of Jharkhand Shakeel Ahmed told IANS.

"Though the JVM-P was technically in UPA, it was not behaving as an ally in the state for the past many months," he said.

Ahmed claimed the UPA had the support of 255 MPs in the Lok Sabha after the exit of Trinamool Congress (19) and JVM-P (2) and added that 50 others including the Samajwadi Party (22), Bahujan Samaj Party (21), Rashtriya Janata Dal (4) and Janata Dal-Secular (3) were supporting the government from outside, adding up to 305, much above the half way mark of 273 in the 543-member house.

Yadav announced that the JVM-P MPs would soon meet President Pranab Mukherjee and hand over a letter withdrawing support from the central government.

JVM-P has opposed FDI in the retail sector, the hike in diesel prices and the limit on subsidised LPG cylinders.

The JVM-P and the Congress had fought 2009 assembly polls together but differences cropped up between them later.

Jharkhand Congress president Pradeep Balmuchu said: "Our alliance with JVM-P had broken long back. The withdrawal will have no impact on the central government."