No-confidence motion: Shatrughan Sinha to back BJP as a "disciplined soldier"

BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha, known to speak against his party and the government publicly, said on Thursday that notwithstanding his differences with the saffron party he will vote against the opposition's no-trust vote in Parliament on Friday.

Shatrughan Sinha. Photo: AFP

NEW DELHI: BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha, known to speak against his party and the government publicly, said on Thursday that notwithstanding his differences with the saffron party he will vote against the opposition's no-trust vote in Parliament on Friday.   The BJP MP from Patna Sahib also made it clear that he has no intention to quit the BJP before the 2019 general election. His remarks came amidst reports of his growing proximity with RJD chief Lalu Prasad and his family in recent times. "I am a member of the BJP and will follow party command as a disciplined soldier...I will be with the party during the troubled times and go with it to defeat the opposition-sponsored no-confidence vote," Sinha told PTI. Moved by the former BJP ally TDP and others, the no-confidence motion, first since the BJP-led NDA government came to power four years ago, would be taken up in the lower house tomorrow for debate and voting. Sinha has been criticising the leadership of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and various policies of the government through his tweets. The actor-politician justified his critical comments on different issues, saying it was like showing "mirror" and that he would continue doing so in future."But, this is all within the family," he said. The two-term MP also made it clear that he has no intention to say goodbye to the BJP. His remarks assume significance in the backdrop of reports of his increasing closeness with Lalu Prasad. Apart from meeting Lalu Prasad in Ranchi jail, Sinha also attended an Iftaar party on June 15 hosted by his son and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav while giving a slip to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's party on the same day.