Thaindian News

New Delhi, Jan 8 (IANS) The Congress Sunday brushed off reports about cracks in the ruling UPA coalition, saying “too much” should not be read into the angry outburst of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.”I don’t think we should read too much into these things…We all understand her (Banerjee’s) concerns and I’m sure she understands our compulsions. I think there is a need for better communication,” Law Minister and senior party leader Salman Khurshid told NDTV, a day after the Trinamool Congress chief challenged the Congress to walk out of the coalition government in West Bengal.

Khurshid blamed the bickering between the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) partners on “mismatch in expectations and responses”.

Banerjee’s Trinamool is mainly responsible for blocking some key government policies and bills, including foreign direct investment in retail and the anti-graft Lokpal law.

“I’m sure Mamataji also has expectations of people who voted for her and change in the ruling establishment of West Bengal after such a long time. But again, we are a national party and we have a lot of expectations that go beyond the concerns of only one state. So, there will sometimes be a mismatch in expectations, a mismatch in our responses and sometimes a mismatch in answering to our constituencies.”

The Congress and Trinamool ties have been rocked by a series of confrontations recently, especially in West Bengal.

The latest confrontation was triggered after the West Bengal government proposed to rename Indira Bhavan, a building named after the late prime minister, in Kolkata’s Salt Lake.