New Delhi:
A political row over the government's bill to legitimize the appointment of former telecom regulator Nripendra Misra as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's principal secretary is all but over.
The ruling BJP today won over key opposition parties, leaving the Congress isolated in Parliament.
The bill seeking to amend the Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRAI) Act was cleared in the Lok Sabha by a voice vote in which the house was silent during a call for "Noes".
If cleared in both houses, it will replace the ordinance that the new government passed just two days after taking over in May, to enable Mr Misra, a former TRAI chairman, to join Mr Modi's team. Before this, an ex-telecom regulator could never take a government job.
With the opposition badly divided, the bill is unlikely to face trouble even in the Rajya Sabha, where the BJP is in a minority and the Congress is the single largest party.
Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress and BSP leader Mayawati said they will not oppose the government.
The Trinamool, which had planned to move a resolution with the Congress against the government's bill, took a 180 degree turn that many linked to its desperation for a financial bailout package for Bengal, the state it rules.
"The TMC is a responsible party. The PM can choose any officer whom he thinks fit for the post," said Trinamool leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay in the Lok Sabha.
Mayawati said her BSP would support the government. "It is the PM's prerogative to choose his secretary. We should not oppose the appointment if he is a good official," she said.
Congress allies Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Samajwadi Party won't oppose the bill and neither will the AIADMK or the Left.
The Prime Minister reportedly handpicked Mr Misra, a 1967-batch IAS officer who has held several important positions in the government. Mr Misra was secretary in the ministries of telecom and commerce.
The 69-year-old was also Principal Secretary to Kalyan Singh when he was the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh in the early 1990s.