Mamata fires fresh salvo at Manmohan

In another sign of growing strains between Trinamool and Congress, Mamata Banerjee on Monday targeted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for not calling her during the Singur agitation, saying it was perhaps not to annoy her arch rival, Communist Party of India-Marxist.

"During my fast on the Singur land issue, the Prime Minister did not call me. Perhaps he did not want to annoy the CPI-M," Banerjee remarked during an interview aired on three Bengali news channels.

Banerjee said the prime minister had promised to give central funds for West Bengal's developmental activities when he visited the state. This was followed up by a visit by Pranab Mukherjee.

"Since then, I have only seen newspaper headlines about such package," she said suggesting that things have not moved forward.

The Congress, however, refused to be drawn into a war of words with its ally.

"I assure her that prime minister and Pranab Mukherjee if they have made any commitments even before the elections to the people of West Bengal, it will be implemented," party spokesperson Rashid Alvi said.

Banerjee, however, went on to say that Trinamool Congress is a "responsible" constituent of the UPA coalition.

"We have a responsibility to maintain the alliance. But we also have a responsibility to the people who have elected us. We have told this to the Prime Minister too," she said.

The Trinamool Congress carried out its activities based on policies, she said adding, "That is why we have protested against issues like entry of FDI in retail and hike in petrol prices which directly affected the people. But some Congress leaders of the state were working like the CPI(M)."

She also wondered, where the government would get money to implement the Food Security Act, if it comes into force.

On her party's opposition to the Lokpal Bill, Banerjee said, ''When the draft bill was discussed, we were told that the Lokayukta aspect would be left to the states. But in the Lok Sabha, the government said states setting up Lokayuktas will have to follow a model formulated by the Centre. It should be left to the states. Why should they interfere in the Centre-state relations?''

Banerjee said she had also opposed FDI in retail as many people were associated with the business. ''I am sure the media is also opposed to this.''

''If we have a responsibility to keep the Centre in power, we also have a responsibility to take a stand if it takes any anti-people measures,'' she said.

Banerjee said that no leader of the Congress had called her when she was stopped on way to Nandigram after the police firing that killed 14 people.

''I tried to call up a Congress leader and sought help. He quickly hung up the phone, saying the CPI(M) would be annoyed,'' he said.

Pointing out that the Congress was a minority at the Centre and was running the government with the support of the Trinamool Congress, Banerjee said, ''We have only one cabinet minister. There are five ministers of state, but they are hardly given any work. Our party does not even have a room in Parliament.''

She charged a section of Congress leaders with fielding Independent candidates in the Assembly polls to defeat the Trinamool Congress.

''We have 183 MLAs in the  294-member House. Without the Congress and BJP (working against the Trinamool Congress), the Left Front would have got only 19 seats. In some seats, the Congress had fielded Independents (against the Trinamool Congress) so that the CPI(M) can win,'' she pointed out.