Several Indian opposition parties on Wednesday filed two motions of no confidence against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which holds a strong majority in parliament with 303 seats out of 542 in the lower house.

While these motions are expected to fail due to Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) having a clear majority, they serve as a symbolic move to push for a debate on critical issues, including the ongoing deadly wave of ethnic violence in the volatile north-eastern region of the country.

The Indian National Congress (INC) party, part of a newly formed alliance of major opposition parties ahead of next year’s general elections, has reportedly obtained authorization for the no-confidence vote from the parliament.

Additionally, a parliamentarian from the regional Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party, not part of the coalition, has filed a similar motion.

For a no-confidence vote to proceed in the Indian parliament, the support of at least 50 members of the House is necessary, a threshold the Congress party is expected to achieve without complications.

On the other hand, the BRS, with only nine seats, would require support from other members for their motion to proceed.

Though both motions are likely to fail, given Modi’s BJP holds 303 of the 543 seats in the lower house, they would compel the prime minister to address the recent wave of ethnic violence in Manipur, which has been ongoing for months.

Opposition MP Binoy Viswam emphasized that the no-confidence motion serves a political purpose and will lead to meaningful discussions within the parliament regarding the country’s issues, particularly the situation in Manipur.

“The no-confidence motion will compel him (Modi) to come to the parliament. We need a discussion on the issues of the country, especially on Manipur, inside the parliament. Forget the numbers, they know the numbers and we know the numbers,” Viswam said.

During the current “monsoon session” of parliament that began last week, the opposition has been blocking all sessions, demanding that Modi appear in the House to address the riots in BJP-ruled Manipur state.

According to government figures, the ethnic conflict in Manipur has resulted in more than 140 fatalities and displaced over 50,000 people since May 3.

This is not the first time Modi faces a vote of no confidence. In 2018, the opposition also presented a similar initiative that failed with 325 votes against and 126 in favor.

Since gaining independence from the British Empire in 1947, 27 motions of censure have been presented in the lower house. EFE

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