The Union finance minister turned down Mamata’s appeal to visit Burdwan to review the law and order situation there.
The Union finance minister, P Chidambaram’s visit to Kolkata on Saturday evening turned out to be a spoiler sport for UPA’s principal ally Trinamool Congress and at the same time a reason for cheer for the ruling Left Front in West Bengal.
On the one hand, Chidambaram reacted positively to the state government’s appeal by holding talks with the state chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on the Maoist problems in the state and also agreeing to visit the Maoist-stronghold Lalgarh region in West Midnapore district on Sunday morning. But on the other hand, the Union home minister turned down an appeal from the Trinamool supreme and railways minister, Mamata Banerjee to also visit Burdwan and review the law and order situation there in the wake of the alleged “CPI(M)-sponsored terrorism” against Trinamool activists there.
It is learnt that although a visit to Burdwan was originally in the schedule of Chidambaram’s two-day Bengal visit, it was cancelled at a later stage. Political analysts believe that the last moment cancellation of Chidambaram’s visit might have a negative impact on Congress-Trinamool alliance in West Bengal especially before the polls in 82 civic bodies in the state in May 2010, considered as the dress rehearsal for 2011 state assembly elections.
However, as per schedule, Chidambaram had an almost hour long closed-door meeting with Bhattachajree on Saturday evening, where details about the counter-Maoist offensive in West Bengal were discussed. After the meeting Chiddambaram left in a hurry without replying to the queries of the intrigued media to attend another meeting with representatives from West Bengal Congress and Trinamool Congress. The Union home minister is expected to hold a formal press conference on Sunday noon after his Lalgarh-visit.
Trinamool, however, on its part, is trying is hard to downplay Chidambaram’s reluctance to make a visit to Burdwan and the party leaders do not think that this decision is equivalent to rubbing Mamata the wrong way. A Trinamool spokesman here told DNA that the Union home minister could not make his visit to Burdwan because of the lack of time in his busy schedule. “But we are sure that the Union home minister will surely make it next time,” he said.
When questioned about Chidambaram’s positive nod to the state government plea to visit Lalgarh, the Trinamool spokesman said, “Now the Union home minister is going there, he will see for himself the kind of underdevelopment, poverty and the lack of basic living amenities there”.
Meanwhile, as a protest against Chidambaram’s visit to Lalgarh, the Maoist-based People Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) has called a 24-hour bandh on Sunday at the three Maoist-stronghold districts of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia. On Saturday morning, the Maoists guerrillas blasted a powerful landmine at Lalgarh and there are reports of heavy exchange of fire between the combined forces personnel and the ultra-red guerrillas.
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