Didi to meet Modi in Delhi; talks with Opp on card over anti-BJP Federal front bid

At a time when her party Trinamool Congress is engaged in a dogfight with the BJP over the upcoming State Panchayat elections, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi when she will visit the national Capital to attend the meeting of a committee that will be chaired by him. The committee has been set up to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

Notwithstanding the frontal war Banerjee had of late declared against the saffron party to dislodge it from power the Bengal Chief Minister is likely to raise some demands for her State “if they meet in the sidelines of the meeting,” sources said adding however that no one-on-one meeting had yet been scheduled.

Mamata will set out for Delhi on Wednesday and return to Kolkata the next day sources said making chances of separate meeting slim.

Her meeting with the Prime Minister apart, the Bengal Chief Minister is also likely to meet a number of Opposition leaders apparently to discuss the formation of an anti-BJP Federal front though State Trinamool leaders would not dwell much on the issue.

“It all will depend on whether leaders like Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, his Andhra counterpart Chandrababu Naidu or for that matter other non NDA leaders are available in Delhi during the period when our leader will visit the place,” a senior leader said.

On whether she will also meet Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi, TMC leaders remained non committal saying “Mamata Banerjee takes her decisions depending upon the situation. It is upon her whether she will meet the Congress leaders now.”

Incidentally Congress and the Trinamool Congress are engaged in a bitter battle in Bengal with the Congress accusing the TMC of reducing Bengal into a goonda raj.