Trinamool Congress MPs, who at a meeting here two days ago “unanimously” decided to pull out of the United Progressive Alliance government in protest against the recent rise in petrol prices and for not being consulted, have sought an appointment with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on November 8.
This comes on the heels of the assertion of party chairperson and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that she was “proud” of their decision to withdraw from the ruling coalition — one for which she “congratulated” them. But she suggested that for the sake of “minimum courtesy” the MPs ought to take their grievance to the Prime Minister on his return to the country. Dr. Singh returned on November 5.
“An appointment has been sought with the Prime Minister for November 8, as he leaves for the meeting of the SAARC in Maldives the following day,” a senior leader who is also a Union Minister of State told The Hindu here on Sunday.
The Trinamool Congress has 18 MPs in the Lok Sabha and another 6 in the Rajya Sabha. A pull-out from the UPA government would mean the collapse of the government, something she did not want “when the Prime Minister is out of the country,” she had said.
What remains to be seen is whether the threat is carried out or it is just another tactic being used by the party to pressure its bigger alliance partner in the UPA — the Congress — for bail-out funds for a State allegedly mired in fiscal bankruptcy.
While the purported reason behind the threat is the frequent rise in prices of petroleum products — 11 times over the past 12 months — and the Trinamool's claim that it has not been consulted when such decisions are taken, it is obvious that the move has been prompted by the party's need to distance itself from the Centre's failure to check inflation and hikes in petroleum prices, both of which have resulted in growing public discontent.
