Dinesh Trivedi exit: TMC discusses rollback; unions threaten agitation

After getting Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi to resign, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee reached Delhi to discuss with her MPs the plan to roll back passenger fares but might find opposition to this scheme from railway unions who have threatened to agitate.

CNN-IBN reported that the beleaguered Railway Minister has sent his resignation to the government. However, despite a recent standoff with his party chief over when to resign, Trivedi said he would be attending the party meet in Delhi today.

“Mamata-ji has invited me to the meeting and since I am still a member of the Trinamool Congress I will be going,” Trivedi told reporters outside his official residence in Delhi today.

When asked if he would be meeting with the Prime Minister or Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Trivedi said he had no plans to meet anyone.

Trivedi had announced the raising fares on all passenger classes of Indian Railways in his maiden railway budget speech, a move which was opposed by his party and following which he had been asked to resign.

Meanwhile, Banerjee refused to comment on reports about a partial rollback of the fare hike and replacing Trivedi with MP and party stalwart Mukul Roy.

“I have come because I have not come in 9 months. I will meet all of my MPs,” Banerjee said.

Report suggested that Banejee’s party MPs would seek a partial rollback of the fare hike proposal made by Trivedi. The debate in Parliament on the railway budget is expected to be on Tuesday with either the Prime Minister or Finance Minister having to defend the proposals made in the budget before Parliament.

Meanwhile, railway unions have said they will agitate if the government rolls back the proposed fare hikes and does not provide sufficient budgetary support.

“If there is a rollback of the fare hike, the shortfall should be met by the general exchequer. But in case there is a rollback and it is not compensated by the general exchequer, we will launch an agitation,” Shiv Gopal Mishra, General Secretary, All India Railwaymen’s Federation was quoted as saying in the Indian Express.

The railway unions have been pushing for a hike in passenger fares and all the unions have said that they will support the agitation against the government if the TMC’s demands are met.