TC appears isolated on demand for President’s rule in West Bengal

A file picture of Railway Minister Mamata Bannerjee, arriving at Parliament House on the second day of the first session of 15th Lok Sabha in New Delhi. Congress MP Priya Dutta, is also seen. Photo: PTI.

The Trinamool Congress appears totally isolated on the demand for imposition of President’s rule in West Bengal with its ally Congress today distancing itself from the demand.

Mr. Mamata Banerjee’s party appeared to be ploughing a lonely furrow on the issue in Parliament as well as outside with the Congress making it known that it was not subscribing to the demand.

“Law and order in West Bengal is bad in several places.

We have got such inputs. But there is no proposal from within the party for the imposition of Article 356,” Congress spokesman Shakeel Ahmed, told reporters here.

While Mr. Ahmed said it was an issue to be decided by the government, Home Minister P. Chidambaram, made it clear in Parliament that there was “no scope” for imposition of President’s rule in the state in the wake of Supreme Court’s order in the S.R. Bommai case.

Incidentally, Parliament saw arch rivals Left parties and BJP today get together to take on the government for sending a central team to West Bengal, accusing it of planning to impose President’s Rule and “murdering democracy“.

Allaying fears of central rule, Mr. Chidambaram said in identical statements in both Houses that there was “no need to view it (visit of the team) through the prism of Article 356 (under which the President’s Rule is imposed in a state).”