Trinamool looks to up its tally in Cabinet

Not only the Trinamool Congress (TC) is enjoying its clout at the Centre, it may also increase its ministerial tally in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle.

According to Congress sources, the TC is likely to get one more minister of state (MoS) slot and Sudip Banerjee — presently the chief whip of the party in the Lok Sabha — may become the minister.

As the Congress brass is gearing up for the Cabinet reshuffle after the current Parliament session, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has sought TC chief Mamata Banerjee’s suggestions for her party’s new nominee. Banerjee has conveyed to the PM and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee that she has nominated Sudip Banerjee for this slot.

Significantly, Banerjee is expecting the slot of MoS for commerce and industry for her party colleague. According to a TC minister, “our leader wants to prove to the electorates that she is not at all anti-industry. If Sudip Banerjee eventually gets the commerce and industry portfolio, it will be a major political move as well. We already have a minister in rural development to look after the interest of the farmers, Sudip Banerjee can send a positive signal to industry through his appointment and work.”

Congress sources suggest that the TC might be offered a slot in either the steel ministry or commerce and industry. Apart from Banerjee’s railway ministry, Trinamool Congress, the biggest ally of the Congress in the UPA, already has six MoS.

After Sudip Banerjee becomes minister, first-time MP Kalyan Banerjee is likely to become the chief whip of the party in the Lok Sabha.

Mamata Banerjee, who is eyeing the chief minister’s chair in the 2011 West Bengal elections, wants to send positive signals to all sections including industry and business establishments. As she maintains that both agriculture and industry should “grow like two sisters”, an MoS slot in the commerce and industry ministry can boost these efforts.

Senior TC leaders believe, even a post of MoS for steel can also extract political mileage in West Bengal, given the number of steel plants.

While Sudip Banerjee’s name has been recommended, no one is sure if finally he gets the chair in Udyog Bhawan or not. In the NDA regime, then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had formally called him one evening, inviting him to take oath as a junior minister next afternoon. But Mamata Banerjee scuttled the move and Vajpayee had to call Sudip Banerjee again, hours before the oath-taking ceremony, to say, “I am perhaps the first prime minister who is withdrawing his invitation to become a minister, from someone.”