With railway minister Dinesh Trivedi refusing to step down, Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee plans to mount pressure on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to have him dismissed at the earliest. Ms Banerjee on Saturday rejected Mr Trivedi’s demand that he should be given marching orders in writing.
With Ms Banerjee’s declaration that “Trivedi is no more railway minister”, the government appears to be in a major fix. It is likely to face a tough time facing the Opposition if Mr Trivedi remains in the post during the Parliament discussion on the Railway Budget and its passage.
Ms Banerjee said Saturday: “Mukul Roy is our candidate. The government will have to decide.”
Defying Ms Banerjee’s diktat to step down, Mr Trivedi not only insisted that his party chief should ask him in writing to resign, he also said the Prime Minister should remove him. Mr Trivedi also hinted he wanted to stay put till the Railway Budget was passed. “I presented the Railway Budget, and I’m not going to leave halfway.” He criticised the Trinamul chief, saying her “ways were undemocratic”.
Mr Trivedi also dared Ms Banerjee to expel him from the party. Taking a swipe at the Trinamul resolution condemning him, Mr Trivedi told a television channel: “Thank God they didn’t call me a terrorist.”
The drama started early Saturday morning when Trinamul MP Kalyan Banerjee called Mr Trivedi and conveyed Ms Banerjee’s order that he quit. Mr Trivedi said he would do so only after getting written instructions from Ms Banerjee.