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...India's Parliament, unzipped a black leather bag and, with TV cameras rolling, hauled out stacks of 1,000-rupee notes. The money, they claimed, represented bribes they had been offered by allies of the country's ruling Congress Party to withhold their ballots in a crucial July 22 vote of confidence. While allegations of "suitcase politics" are nothing new in India, it just wasn't cricket to theatrically air dirty laundry in such a public forum. Afterward, Somnath Chatterjee, India's lower-house speaker, called it "a very sad day in the history of Parliament...
...been a sad few weeks. It's often said that the world's largest democracy is also one of its messiest. But even India's jaded electorate, which is accustomed to political scandals, was stunned by the blatant horse-trading and strident mudslinging that led up to the confidence vote, which determined whether Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Congress Party - led coalition would remain in power. The administration won by a 275-256 margin, with 10 abstentions, ensuring its survival for now. But in the run-up to the vote, including two days of acrimonious parliamentary debate that...
...Still, Singh and the Congress Party have lived to fight another day. The confidence vote was called to resolve a bitter dispute over the administration's support for a civilian nuclear-technology agreement between India and the U.S. India's two main leftist parties pulled out of Singh's coalition government over the pact, which they say makes India subservient to U.S. strategic interests. Singh, who argued nuclear power is needed for continued economic development, can now push ahead with the deal, which still needs the approval of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the U.S. Congress...
...save the nuclear accord - and its political skin? The party has been positioning itself as willing to take a principled stand on important national issues. But that image-polishing may have been undermined by the swirl of allegations of backroom dealing and the dismal spectacle surrounding the confidence vote. Singh's coalition government may be secure for now, but the Congress Party will face another test next year in parliamentary elections. Politicians can only hope India's long-suffering voters are willing to turn a blind eye to the messy foibles of their elected representatives one more time...
...Delhi RIDING OUT THE STORM India's Congress Party--led government celebrated after surviving a July 22 no-confidence vote, salvaging a nuclear deal with the U.S. that could ease the country's energy shortage. Opponents said the deal threatened Indian sovereignty by catering to American demands. The victory was tainted by allegations of bribery from three opposition-party members who claimed that government supporters had offered them money to abstain from voting...