Thaindian News

Kolkata, May 26 (IANS) Taking strong exception to the Trinamool Congress opposing the central government over the recent petrol price hike, West Bengal Congress leaders Saturday said the Mamata Banerjee-led party could walk out of the United Progressive Alliance government if it felt so, and threatened to launch similar protests against her government in the state over various issues.

“If Trinamool Congress is so much pained with the petroleum price hike, then why are they not walking out of the central government,” Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury told media persons here.

Another Congress MP, Deepa Dasmunshi said: “If they are taking out rallies against the central government because they are bothered about the common man, then we will also take out rallies against the state government over various mismanagements and wrong doings.”

“Instead of raising objection in the cabinet meeting, (Trinamool leader) Mukul Roy took out a rally against the government in which he is railway minister. This is unfair and against the rules of coalition politics. Though in Bengal we have an alliance government but Trinamool hardly bothers to discuss various important issues with us,” she added.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Saturday led a mammoth rally in the southern part of Kolkata to register her protest and pressurise the central government to roll back the petroleum price hike.

This was Trinamool’s second rally in the city. Earlier, on Thursday, Railway Minister Mukul Roy led a five-km-long protest rally from Hazra Crossing to the Gandhi Statue on Mayo Road in central Kolkata.

Meanwhile, state Congress president Pradip Bhattacharjee requested Banerjee to consider “partial reduction of taxes charged by the state government on petrol in order to provide some relief to people”.