'Cong & BJP may destroy mahajot'

Pranab fax for Ghani
Statesman News Service

MALDA, Jan. 17. — A fax message from West Bengal Pradesh Congress chief Mr Pranab Mukherjee has left party stalwart Mr ABA Ghani Khan Chowdhury in trouble. Peeved at Mr Chowdhury’s outburst against the party high command, Mr Mukherjee faxed the letter yesterday, stating that there was no question of forming a mahajot in the state involving the BJP. Mr Chowdhury, who held a meeting with Miss Mamata Banerjee at his residence here yesterday, had said that notwithstanding the party high command’s stand, he would work for the formation of a mahajot in the state with the BJP as its constituent and that he had no reservation in tying up with the Trinamul even if it remained an ally of the BJP. Sources said Congress leaders have been pressuring Mr Chowdhury to withdraw his “anti party” statement. Addressing a joint press conference with Miss Banerjee yesterday, the former railway minister and Malda strongman had said: “Pranabbabu does not know the ground realities of Bengal and he tries to mislead Mrs Sonia Gandhi. During the forthcoming Congress session at Hyderabad, I will try to make Mrs Gandhi aware about the need to form a grand alliance in the state for the Assembly poll.” Opposing Mr Chowdhury’s statement, a senior Congress leader in New Delhi reportedly told Mr Mukherjee to take up the matter with the party high command and instruct Mr Chowdhury not to hold parleys with the BJP for a grand alliance. Malda Congress leaders have, however, downplayed the fax message of Mr Mukherjee, saying “it was a letter on family matters”. Interestingly, at a time when Mr Chowdhury has expressed his willingness to form a mahajot involving the BJP, his sister and MLA, Mrs Ruby Noor said: “We have to maintain a secular image because of acceptability among the minority communities in West Bengal. There is no doubt that it is a critical factor in the state.”

Statesman News Service

MALDA, Jan. 16. — The Trinamul Congress chief, Miss Mamata Banerjee, today warned the Malda district Trinamul Congress leaders from doing anything as per their own discretion, as the Congress and the BJP in Malda can ‘destroy’ their entire effort to form a mahajot in Bengal. After a marathon meeting with the local leaders, Miss Mamata Banerjee urged the Trinamul Congress leaders to dislodge the LF backed ruling board in the English Bazaar Municipality and form a new board with help from the Congress and the BJP. This will be just a miniature version of the Mahajot to showcase two examples in Malda, the other being the Malda Zilla Parishad. Though, it was decided that Miss Banerjee would today finalise and propose the name of a Trinamul councillor for the English Bazaar Municipality, but, she just evaded the issue before the press, saying: “Let them first dislodge the CPI-M from the board and then the question of selecting a chairman will arise.” It may be recalled that owing to factional feud among the Trinamul Congress leaders, the CPI-M managed to elicit one vote from the Trinamul Congress camp six months ago. However, after a meeting with Miss Mamata Banerjee today, the Trinamul Congress today tabled a letter reminding the LF backed civic body chief that they would call in a ‘requisition’ meeting for calling a no-confidence motion against him. Reports state that neither the civic body chief or his deputy have , called a meeting to prove their majority in the board even after receiving the no-confidence motion proposition letter by the 13 councillors, including the Congress and BJP as per the Municipal Act.#

Pic. Anindita Roy

Pranab for Mamata as CM sans BJP help

Statesman News Service

DURGAPUR /KOLKATA, Jan. 16. — The Congress has finally given up all reservations bar the one regarding the inclusion of the BJP in an anti-Left alliance. The party today declared Trinamul Congress president Miss Mamata Banerjee as the chief ministerial candidate of the proposed Opposition grand alliance or mahajot sans the BJP for the forthcoming Assembly election in West Bengal. The state Congress president and defence minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, declared: ‘‘We are all set to project Mamata as our choice for the chief minister of the state during the election campaign.’’ Mr Mukherjee told reporters, ‘‘the PCC working committee had agreed to go in for a mahajot to confront the Left Front in the Assembly election. We had firm resolutions in this respect favouring a non-communal front and the copy of the resolutions have already been sent to Mamata for her appraisal.” The PCC president said, ‘‘undoubtedly Mamata is the most popular leader in anti-Left politics and she deserves this projection. We have got just a single rider that she has to quit her alliance with the BJP.’’Mr Mukherjee declared this considering the gravity of Miss Banerjee’s meeting with Mr ABA Ghani Khan Chowdhury in Malda today. Mr Chowdhury asked the Congress to allow Mamata to continue her alliance with the BJP in certain seats on the lines of what had been followed in the Malda civic poll.Asked what the PCC is going to do if she refuses to desert her NDA friends, Mr Mukherjee said, ‘‘I am yet to sit with her for a direct discussion on the issue.” In another move, Miss Banerjee today upped the ante against the CPI-M by deciding to address a party meeting on 19 January at the very spot in Barasat where trouble erupted 12 years ago and for which a non-bailable arrest warrant had been issued against her.

Ghani differs

MALDA, Jan. 16. — Refusing to toe the line of WBPCC president Mr Pranab Mukherjee, veteran party leader Mr ABA Ghani Khan Chowdhury, who met Trinamul Congress chief Ms Mamata Banerjee here today, started the spadework for a mahajot including the BJP, in his home district of Malda for the coming state Assembly poll. Mr Khan Chowdhury said the grand alliance would take place irrespective of the state leadership’s stand and he would meet Mrs Sonia Gandhi to convince her. He said that the Congress needed the unqualified support of Miss Banerjee in its efforts to oust the CPI-M from power in West Bengal. — SNS

Mamata wants Malda model for mahajot all the way

Malda Jan. 14.— Miss Mamata Banerjee wants to have the Malda model for mahajot [grand alliance] in all Assembly constituencies in the state. “Not only in Malda, under the leadership of Mr ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury, we also want the mahajot in all 294 seats,” Miss Mamata Banerjee told reporters here on Saturday on her way to attend a party programme at Kumarganj in South Dinajpur. “I met him (Malda MP, Mr ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury) in Kolkata. I must meet him if he returns to Malda by day after tomorrow,” she said. “Mamata may finalise a seat particularly English Bazaar for the Trinamul Congress here talking to Barkat da,” sources said. “I have got the nod of Barkat da (Ghani Khan) himself,” said Mr Krishnendu Narayan Chowdhury, district president Malda Trinamool, who contested in English Bazaar against the Congress in last the Assembly election. — SNS

All eyes on Ghani Khan published on 12-13 January 2006.