I/III. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Mamata-to-cut-short-tour-will-receive-Modi-in-Kolkata/articleshow/47143935.cms
Mamata to cut short tour, will receive Modi in Kolkata Mohua Chatterjee,TNN | May 4, 2015, 05.40 AM IST Mamata Banerjee's calibrated stance in dealing with the Narendra Modi government was evident when she met the PM for the first time since he came to office on her last visit to the capital, during the first half of Parliament's budget session. NEW DELHI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress may be playing the role of tough opposition in Parliament and in the state which goes for assembly elections in exactly an year but she has decided to take a break from her tour of the districts and receive Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he lands in Kolkata on May 9 on a two-day visit. Banerjee's calibrated stance in dealing with the Modi government was evident when she met the PM for the first time since he came to office on her last visit to the capital, during the first half of Parliament's budget session. That Banerjee will be at the airport to receive Modi, hold a meeting with him and also be present for the two programmes that the PM is scheduled to attend on May 9 and 10 is also seen as an extension of the same tactical approach to project that her party may be politically opposed to BJP but as chief minister, she is not only honouring the protocol but also cooperating with the Centre for the benefit of the state. TMC sweeping the municipal elections across the state last week and checking BJP's progress in the state, with the party drawing a blank, seems to have boosted Banerjee's confidence a year before assembly elections. It is also important for Banerjee to get the most that she can from the Centre to be able to talk progress and development before the assembly polls, especially when her government and her party have been marred by the Saradha scam. It is not without reason that TMC has been supporting the NDA government's bills on GST and the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh even as it is opposing the land bill and the real estate bill in Parliament. Modi will announce the government's mega scheme on social security insurance and pension, on the lines of the Jan Dhan Yojana, in Kolkata on May 9, after which other central ministers along with chief ministers will announce them from other cities. There will be simultaneous functions across states with participation from CMs and Cabinet ministers. "It would be like the Jan Dhan scheme launch so that we have maximum awareness in minimum time," department of financial services secretary Hasmukh Adhia told reporters here. On May 10, Modi will attend a function at IISCO in Burnpur, near Kolkata. In both programmes, Banerjee will be present with Modi. II/III. http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-someone-is-trying-to-hog-spotlight-derek-o-brien-indirectly-takes-jibe-at-rahul-gandhi-2082697 Someone is trying to hog spotlight: Derek O'Brien indirectly takes jibe at Rahul Gandhi Saturday, 2 May 2015 - 11:58pm IST | Place: Kolkata | Agency: PTI On a day Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi branded Narendra Modi government as "pro-builder" over the Real Estate Bill, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien on Saturday said he is amused that someone is trying to hog the spotlight. On a day Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi branded Narendra Modi government as "pro-builder" over the Real Estate Bill, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien on Saturday said he is amused that someone is trying to hog the spotlight. "All opposition parties in Rajya Sabha united five days ago to send the Real Estate bill to a select committee... Amused that someone is trying to hog the spotlight," O'Brien said in an apparent reference to Gandhi's resolve to oppose the Real Estate bill. Gandhi, after meeting flat buyers in Delhi-NCR today claimed that the NDA government had "diluted" provisions of Real Estate Regulatory Authority Bill making the legislation "pro-builders" from being pro-buyers. "Government, which has been working against farmers and tribals, is working against the middle class in the same manner," he told reporters after meeting several NCR flat buyers here. "I have assured them that the way I am helping the poor and the tribals, I will do the same for the middle class. I will stand by them," the Congress leader said, as he sought to link the "suffering" of the middle class home-buyers with the issue of land, which the Congress has made a major political plank. III. http://scroll.in/article/724612/four-signs-that-point-to-the-growing-closeness-between-the-trinamool-and-the-bjp BENGAL POLITICS Four signs that point to the growing closeness between the Trinamool and the BJP Shoaib Daniyal · Yesterday · 08:00 am Events since March indicate a definite thawing of relations between Mamata Banerjee and the BJP. The Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party had faced off aggressively during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. While campaigning, Mamata Banerjee had called Narendra Modi, Danga Babu (Mr Riot), said he was a "donkey" for getting his facts wrong, taken a dig at his relationship with his wife and, after the Bharatiya Janata Party won the elections, even refused to attend Modi's swearing-in ceremony. This war continued once the Bharatiya Janata Party assumed power in Delhi. Amit Shah, coming in to campaign for by-elections, would take aim at Trinamool, at a time when the Bharatiya Janata Party looked to be growing by leaps and bounds in the state Politics, though, is a fast-paced game. After months of confrontation, however, events since March indicate a definite thawing of relations between Mamata Banerjee and the BJP. On March 10, Mamata Banerjee stopped her boycott of Modi and met him for the first time since he became prime minister, the stated aim of the meeting being a discussion around West Bengal's finances. The Communist Party of India (Marxist), however, decided to read more into this event. "As I have said before, there is an under the table settlement between Bharatiya Janata Party and TMC. Both the parties are ready. They are just weighing their conditions," said the Left Front chairman, Biman Bose. Bose may not have been that far off the mark. Events since then, leading up to the end-April civic polls in Bengal, have shown the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party seeming to come together. Here are some instances of their growing teamwork: *1. Saradha scam investigation slow down* After attacking the Trinamool Congress over the massive Ponzi scheme with alleged links to top party leaders, the BJP-led Central government slowed things down considerably. Three of the main accused were let off on bail in February and Trinamool member of parliament Mukul Roy, a close aide of Banerjee, wasn't arrested at all, in spite of strong prima facie links with the case. *2. Ceasefire over the the Burdwan Blast* On October 2 2014, a blast in a house in Burdwan district, West Bengal killed two people and injured a third. With terror accusations being levelled, the BJP used this to attack the Trinamool: the West Bengal government was accused of botching the investigation on purpose. The BJP president, Amit Shah, even went so far as to say that the money from the Saradha scam (in which Trinamool leaders are accused) was used to fund the blast. While the investigations by the National Investigation Agency are still underway, political attacks by the BJP on this issue have stopped since March. *3. No Central forces for civic elections* [This may be just off the mark. Central forces, understandably, cannot be deployed on poll duty unless the State Election Commission asks for.] In spite of a shrill demand by the Bharatiya Janata Party state unit and, indeed, a grudging request from Mamata Banerjee herself (after being prodded by the Election Commission), the Central government still refused to send in its forces to enforce order during the April civic elections in Bengal, which saw 92 municipalities, including Kolkata's, go to polls. Opposition parties and, significantly, even the head of the State Election Commission, had noted the extremely high level of violence seen in the polls, the main beneficiary of which was the Trinamool, given its strong organisational strength. The Trinamool Congress swept the polls, winning in 70 out of 91 municipal bodies. After the sharp war of words between the two parties till not very long age, Union Minister Harsh Vardhan congratulated the Trinamool on this victory and even had words of praise for Banerjee, who he is slated to meet, as he tours Kolkata. *4. Trinamool's support in Parliament* With the laundry list of BJP favours, this was the Trinamool's quid pro quo. After the Modi-Mamata Banerjee meeting, the Trinamool, changed tack to support two crucial government bills in Parliament, the coal and mines bills, in March. Mamata Banerjee has also agreed to support the government in passing the Goods and Service Tax bill as well as a controversial bill for a land boundary agreement with Bangladesh. Given the lack of numbers for the ruling BJP in the Rajya Sabhya, the Trinamool Congress' legislative support is crucial. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
