UPA and supporters: 268 MPs for the government NDA and others: 263 MPs against the government Undecided: 11 MPs Non-voting: 1 MP
Voting
In the 543 member Lok Sabha, the UPA needed 272 votes for the government to enjoy a simple majority.[3] The UPA won the confidence vote with 275 votes to the opposition's 256, (10 members abstained from the vote) to record a 19-vote victory.[4][5][6][7]
Abstentions
Ten members abstained from the voting despite some of them having received strict contrary instructions from their parties.[8][9] Among the 10, 2 MPs followed their party decision of abstaining so as to not be seen as supporting the UPA or the BJP, Left led opposition. Those two were:
Three BJP MPs – Ashok Argal (Morena), Faggan Singh Kulaste (Mandla) and Mahavir Bhagora (Salumber) amidst discussion walked towards the Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and placed two brown and black leather bags on a table. They pulled out bundles of ₹1,000 (US$12) and alleged that Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh had tried to offer them bribe to vote in favour of the government.[12] The BJP MP Kulaste, alleged that Amar Singh and Congress leader Ahmed Patel, an aide to Sonia Gandhi tried to offer bribe of ₹90 million (US$1.0million) to remain absent from the confidence vote. Amar Singh denied the charges.[12] Speaker Somnath Chatterjee asked the police chief of New Delhi to investigate the bribery issue.[13] Indian news channel CNN IBN which carried out the sting operation by recording using hidden cameras agreed to share the material with Indian authorities.[14] A joint parliamentary committee formed to investigate the issue submitted its report to the Lok Sabha on 15 December 2008, after finding no evidence for bribery against the MPs Amar Singh and Ahmad Patel, thereby exonerating them.[15]
Expulsions
As a result of not obeying the instructions issued by their political parties, many MPs were expelled as an aftermath of the vote.
The Bhartiya Janata Party expelled all its eight members who defied party guidelines by cross voting and abstentions during the vote of confidence. The leader of the party L. K. Advani also said that 22 July should go down as a black day in parliament history.[16]
The Telugu Desam Party has reported that disciplinary action against two of its MPs, D. K. Adikesavulu Naidu and M. Jagannadham, would be taken as they voted in support of UPA government,[17] though there were reports of abstention by Adikeshavalu Naidu.[8]
The Biju Janata Dal expelled its MP, Harihara Swain for voting in favour of government.[18]
The Shiromani Akali Dal has asked for an explanation from its MP who abstained from voting.[18]
Animal sacrifice
It was reported that the Samajwadi Party MLA from Lanji Kishore Samrite sacrificed 319 animals – 302 goats, 17 buffaloes – in a 10-day-long yajna for appeasing the Goddess Kamakhya in order for UPA to win the trust vote. Samrite also offered another 'yajna' at Ugratara temple in the city and sacrificed two buffalos there.[19] He spent about 17 lakh on the yajna, and self-confessed to have done it before several times, in distress.
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