Monday, May 20th 06:42 AM IST

WB Congress changes stand, doesn’t want to part with TMC

Jun 20, 2012

Kolkata: Apparently toeing the central party leadership’s move to keep Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee in good humour ahead of the Presidential poll, the West Bengal Congress which had threatened to pull out of the state government, today changed track and said it wanted to work in harmony with the ally.

“We fought the Left Front and won the election and formed the government. TMC is also a partner of the UPA government at the Centre. We want to work together peacefully, harmoniously and jointly in West Bengal”, WBCLP leader Mohammad Sohrab, known to be close to Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee,
told PTI.

The West Bengal Congress had initially said they would part with the TMC for opposing Pranab Mukherjee's candidature. PTI

Asked whether the party unit was still sticking to its resolution adopted last week that it was ‘feeling uncomfortable’ in the Mamata Banerjee government, Sohrab said, “Let us not rake up words like uncomfortable”.

On the party unit’s earlier contention wanting the high command to give it permission to walk out of the state government, he said, “We have said that earlier. But now the situation has changed much.

“In a democracy there can be different opinions. We want to work in a good way. At the same time we also appeal to the TMC and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to support Pranab Mukherjee in the presidential election”, he said.

Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad had yesterday said that Mamata Banerjee had not crossed any limit by suggesting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh‘s name for the President’s post and wanted the Trinamool Congress supremo to remain a valued ally.

PTI

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