Trinamool to vote for Pranab, says ‘no option’

MARCUS DAM

THE HINDU, July 18, 2012

It is not right to waste our vote by not casting it, hence the painful decision: Mamata

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said here on Tuesday that her party would vote for the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) nominee Pranab Mukherjee in the July 19 Presidential election.

 She , however, made it clear that the decision to vote for Mr. Mukherjee was a painful one. “Taking it was difficult…It is not right to waste our vote by not casting it; so we have decided to vote for Pranab Mukherjee. Not that we have accepted the choice wholeheartedly; but we had no option,” she told journalists at the Secretariat after a meeting with some leaders of the Trinamool.

 Shortly therafter, Mr. Mukherjee called on Ms. Banerjee to thank her.

 A decision on the Vice-Presidential election would be taken later, Ms. Banerjee added.

‘Not to please anyone’

 The decision to vote for Mr. Mukherjee was taken because of the “compulsions of coalition politics and our commitment to democracy, not to please anyone,” she said, adding that it did not bring any cheer to her. “It is not about supporting any individual, but concerns the greater good.”

She had “not bowed to any pressure” while taking the decision.

With the former President, Abdul Kalam, whose name the Trinamool had proposed, “unfortunately”’ declining to contest, the party could have decided to abstain from voting “but that would have been wasting our vote and I think it would not have been right” she said.

Ms. Banerjee said that she had informed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of her party’s decision. “I told him that he will be happy to know of our support [to Mr. Mukherjee] though we do not want anything.”

“Old chapter”

 As for her earlier reservations about Mr. Mukherjee’s candidature, Ms. Banerjee said it was “an old chapter” that one should “forget.”  

•  ‘We were not under pressure while taking decision’

•  ‘It is not about supporting any individual but done for the greater good’

Political compulsions behind clean chit to Mamata Banerjee: Brinda karat

PTI, New Delhi, August 30, 2010

CPI(M) attacked Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee for giving a clean chit to Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee for her remarks on Maoist leader Azad’s death, saying the Congress leader was bound by political compulsions.

“Being a junior partner of Trinamool in West Bengal, he is trying to defend the indefensible. The Finance Minister is bound by political compulsions,” senior CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat told reporters outside Parliament.

In Kolkata on Sunday, Mr. Mukherjee had said that Ms. Banerjee advocating talks with the Maoists doesn’t mean she has links with them.

He had also said though the Railway Minister was part of the UPA, her party could have independent thinking on issues.

Commenting on the matter, CPI(M) polit bureau member Sitaram Yechury said, “the Prime Minister should explain why he is saying that Maoist violence is the biggest threat to the internal security of the country. He should say that whatever he has said is wrong and what Ms. Banerjee said is right.”

Pranab constitutes eight-member core committee of WBPCC

KOLKATA,7th JUNE: An eight-member core committee of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress has been formed by its president Pranab Mukherjee to take decisions on policy matters.The committee has been constituted to take decision on important policy and organsational matters in consultation with Mukherjee, the Union Finance minister, since he would be busy in Delhi, WBPCC working president Pradip Bhattacharya said on Monday.

Individual office bearers of the WBPCC would carry on their assignments, he said. Apart from Bhattacharya, other members of the committee were Subrata Mukherjee, working president, Manas Bhunia, leader of Congress legislature party, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, MP, Shankar Singh, Abdul Mannan, Maya Ghose and Subra Ghose, all general secretaries of PCC.

Keeping in mind the next assembly polls in the state, Pranab Mukherjee, who had presided over a meeting of PCC working presidents, general secretaries and the CLP leader here last Saturday, exhorted them to work to strengthen party organisation.

Buddhadeb meets Pranab

Kolkata,30 May: Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee met Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee here on Friday and reportedly updated him on the devastation caused by Cyclone Aila in West Bengal on Monday. A preliminary report was handed over to Mr. Mukherjee.

The two leaders, who met for the first time since Mr. Mukherjee took over the Finance Ministry, discussed relief operations underway and steps being taken to rehabilitate those rendered homeless. The Chief Minister has sought more than Rs. 1000 crore from the Natural Calamity Contingency Fund and suggested that in view of the severe nature of the cyclone, the disaster be declared a national calamity.

Mr. Mukherjee reportedly told Mr. Bhattacharjee that he would take up the matter with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his return to New Delhi. The State government will submit to the Centre early next month a detailed memorandum on the damage.

By its preliminary assessment the cost of restoration of breached embankments and rehabilitation of those rendered homeless is more than Rs. 1,500 crore.

The official death toll has risen to 117 with the death of two more injured in the landslips in Darjeeling hills, according to State Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta. More than 5.3 million people have been affected and over seven lakh houses have been either destroyed or partially damaged. Several areas in the South and North 24 Parganas districts that were worst hit remain under water. Mr. Bhattacharjee will visit the Gosaba area of South 24 Parganas district on Sunday.