Mamata leaves for Delhi

CALCUTTA, Nov 8 (PTI) — Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee left for Delhi today fuelling speculations about her meetings with the BJP leadership on her withdrawal of resignation from the coordination panel of the ruling coalition allies.

Ms Banerjee, still firm in her stand on the resignation issue, would attend the first anniversary celebrations of the Loktantrik Congress, an ally of the ruling BJP coalition in Uttar Pradesh, in Lucknow on Tuesday.

She would return to Delhi and attend the railway standing committee meeting on November12 and 13 as its chairperson, her party sources said.

According to Trinamool Congress spokesman Sudip Bandopadhyay, MP, Ms Banerjee would meet Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to press her demand for "reversal" of the Centre's stand on closure of eight public sector units, including six in West Bengal. "She will also take up with the Prime Minister the uncertainty of thousands of miners and workers in the coalbelts in the state", Mr Bandopadhyay said.

To a question, he said Ms Banerjee had no programme to meet the BJP leadership "to discuss any issue pertaining to her quitting the coordination committee of the BJP and its allies".