Mamata meets Pranab, discusses budget session strategy

Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee called on Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee at the latter's residence late on Friday evening.

The two leaders talked for around 45 minutes. During the meeting, Mukherjee sought help from the Trinamool chief in the smooth conduct of business in the coming budget session of Parliament.

Addressing media jointly after meeting, Mukherjee said: "I discussed with her (Mamata Banerjee) a few issues including the current situation of Bengal. We also discussed how to work together in the future since we (Congress-Trinamool Congress) have an alliance from Lok Sabha polls and we are in the government, we are running the government together and being members of the Cabinet, we discussed several issues."

He further said he had requested Mamata Banerjee to attend the all-party meeting to be held in New Delhi to break the deadlock between the Opposition and the ruling alliance.

" We have convened an all-party meeting in Delhi on February 8. But Mamata will not be able to attend that because Saraswati Puja will be observed in Bengal on that day,"  he said.

Banerjee said since she is not going to attend the meeting, Trinamool party will send a representative.

"We have budget session ahead of us. Pranab Mukherjee himself is very busy, despite the busy schedule, he came to Kolkata and discussed about West Bengal''s overall situation. Representatives of my party will attend the Feb 8 meeting. We feel Pranab Mukherjee commands respect in the government and we will follow what we will be told," she added.

The upcoming budget session of Parliament in the last week of February is set to be stormy, with opposition parties refusing to relent over the demand of a Joint Parliament Committee (JPC) probe into the 2G scam.