NDA to decide today on Akali claim to post of Dy Speaker

When the NDA meeting takes place tomorrow, a prime subject for discussion will be the Shiromani Akali Dal’s claim to the post of Deputy...

When the NDA meeting takes place tomorrow, a prime subject for discussion will be the Shiromani Akali Dal’s claim to the post of Deputy Speaker in the Lok Sabha.

The Akalis, who consider themselves as a key and trusted BJP ally, had proposed Phillaur MP Charanjit Singh Atwal’s name for the post. Atwal’s name was proposed by the Akali leaders to BJP leaders A.B. Vajpayee and L.K. Advani, at a meeting where they had staked their claim.

Sources said the Shiv Sena — another BJP ally which had initially wanted the post — had today hinted to the Akalis that they were no longer interested in the post.

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Though he is facing pressure from his party to nominate senior Madhya Pradesh leader Satyanarayan Jatiya to the post, Vajpayee is understood to have told a delegation of Akali Dal Parliamentary Party here today that he would put forth their proposal at the NDA meeting tomorrow.

The Akali leaders told The Indian Express that they had blunted the BJP logic about Jatiya being from a Scheduled Caste community as Atwal too belonged to the same community. ‘‘Our case is strong,’’ claimed a senior Akali leader. ‘‘Atwal has a legal background, has been a member and Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha and has also served one term as an MP earlier.’’

The SAD feels that BJP’s attitude towards the party’s claim to the post was crucial for the party’s ties with the NDA. ‘‘It’s not that we would take a tough stand, but what is at stake here is the BJP’s trust in its allies who have stood with through thick and thin,’’ party sources said.

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