New Delhi, August 4
Next year’s assembly elections in West Bengal cast a shadow over the special meeting called by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee to discuss the dramatic manner in which Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Bannerjee stalked out of the Lok Sabha after sending in her resignation letter.

There was a clear division at the meeting as both the Congress and the BJP took a lenient view of Ms. Bannerjee’s resignation drama while the Left parties, who are locked in a bitter political battle with the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, maintained that her misbehaviour could not be condoned and insisted that action be initiated against her. CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta has decided to privilege motion against her.

The BJP and Congress indulgent attitude was being put down to their respective political compulsions. While the BJP does not want to do or say anything which could push the Trinamool Congress out of the NDA fold, the Congress is treating Ms Bannerjee with kid gloves as it has been seeking her return to the parent body before the West Bengal elections.

Left leaders Gurudas Dasgupta and Basudev Acahria received vocal support from BSP’s Brajesh Pathak, Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party and Ramdoss of the PMK who stated that since Ms.Bannerjee had cast aspersions on the Speaker she should be asked to apologise, failing which she should not be allowed back to the House.

BJP leader V. K. Malhotra and Santosh Gangwar suggested that the whole episode be forgotten as “these things keep happening in the House. “Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad who, it is learnt, was evasive on the matter remarked that “Mamata Bannerjee is a mercurial person and one cannot force an apology from her.” Later, talking to presspersons, Mr Azad said he was not being soft on the Trinamool leader but merely taking a practical view on the episode since nobody can bring her forcibly to the Lok Sabha.

The meeting witnessed angry exchanges as CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta took strong objection to Mr Azad’s remarks, stating that he was taking “an individual-centric view” of the issue. “Will you take the same view if a member of another party had misbehaved with the Speaker, “he wanted to know. When Samata Party leader Prabhunath Singh commented that Ms Bannerjee was provoked by CPM leader Basudev Acharia, Mr Dasgupta shot back, “Can a member be provoked so easily...tomorrow a member can be provoked into taking any extreme step.”

The Left leaders were equally angry when the BJP members suggested that Ms Bannerjee should not be named in the resolution which was subsequently read in the House. In that case, Mr Dasgupta suggested, that the resolution should be dropped as it will amount to condemning the whole House. He was subsequently placated by Mr Azad and others.