TMC not to support govt on FDI: Mamata

Ending the confusion that has prevailed about the Trinamool Congress’ (TMC) course of future action in Parliament over the issue of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee on Friday said that her party would not support the government on the issue.

Banerjee, speaking to a media, after a tour of the Hooghly district, said in response to queries from the media that she had received a call from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and had conveyed her inability to support the move to him as well.

“Prime Minister called me and asked me to reconsider. But we have to think of the farmers first and cannot support the move. Also our opposition to FDI in retail is in our manifesto. We cannot go back on that,” she said.

She however declined comment on whether her party will abstain from voting or vote against the government in the motion.

TMC, incidentally, is the second largest ally of the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) with 18 seats in the Lok Sabha. Unlike previous instances of discord with the Congress, however Mamata stayed away from gloomy predictions about the central government’s fall.

“We do not want the government at the centre to fall. Despite this, we cannot support the government on FDI. Farmers are suffering since the decontrol of fertilizer prices last year. The state government has had to give Rs 100 subsidy. Now FDI cannot be allowed,” she explained.

FDI has become the tipping point for UPA-II ever since the Opposition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left started demanding an adjournment motion. The situation was made worse by the fact that coalition partners like TMC have remained reluctant to support the move.