New Delhi: The confusion over the resignation of Dinesh Trivedi as the Railway Minister continues with Trinamool Congress leaders making contradictory statements over the issue. Trinamool Congress Parliamentary party chief in the Lok Sabha, Sudip Bandyopadhyay, said inside the House that the party never asked Trivedi to step down as the Railway Minister just a few minutes after he told the media outside Parliament that a new railway minister would be appointed and it was the prerogative of his party to decide who would get the portfolio.
Tridvedi also denied that he was resigning when he came to attend the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha. Later he said that as the Railway Minister it was his responsibility to get the budget passed in Parliament. Even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh denied receiving Trivedi's resignation and said that he would consider it when the situation arises.
"Trinamool Congress has never asked the minister to resign. The UPA will complete its tenure. There is no threat to the government. The issue will be settled between the government and the Trinamool Congress," said Bandyopadhyay in the Lok Sabha.
While Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Mamata Banerjee asked Manmohan Singh on Wednesday night to sack Trivedi for announcing an across-the-board increase in passenger fares in the Railway Budget, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha that no resignation letter had been received by the Prime Minister's Office.
"As for the resignation of Railways Minister, the Prime Minister has not received any resignation letter from the minister. The Railway Minister has not resigned. We have received a communication from the leader of the Trinamool Congress. It's not unusual that we receive communication from alliance partners. The Prime Minister has received a communication from the Trinamool Congress Chairperson and it is under active consideration of the Prime Minister. When a decision is taken, the House will be communicated," said Mukherjee.
The Finance Minister also assured the Lok Sabha that the Railway Budget 2012-13 presented by Trivedi on Wednesday has not been junked.
"The Railway Budget is definitely owned by the government and approved by the Finance Ministry. Railway Budget is the property of the House. All members have the right to decide and what would be the shape of the Railway Budget. Don't behave like petulant children, behave like political leaders," he told the Opposition members who claimed that the government had lost the authority to govern.
Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajeev Shukla told the Rajya Sabha that only a communication from West Bengal Chief Minister has been received and Trivedi has not yet resigned.
"The Prime Minister has not received resignation of the Railway Minister. He has just received a communication from the Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee. Whenever the Prime Minister takes any position on the communication from Mamata Banerjee, the House will be informed," said Shukla.
Opposition targets government in Parliament:
The Opposition tried to corner the government over reports of Trivedi being forced to resign and demanded answers in both the Houses of Parliament. Opposition MPs blamed the government of being in power, but not having any authority.
MPs from the Left Front and the Bharatiya Janata Party demanded suspension of the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha to discuss Trivedi's resignation.
Opposition MPs indulged in slogan shouting and demanded answer from the government on the fate of the Railway Minister and the budget.
"Is the Railway Budget announced yesterday (Wednesday) still alive or dead? I want to ask has the Railway Budget that has become a property of Parliament. Can the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister get away from it if the Minister of Railways resigns? We need a response to that," asked Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and BJP MP Sushma Swaraj.
"There should be transparency. Pranab Mukherjee will not present the budget without keeping Sonia in loop. Trivedi is sitting in Parliament due to Mamata Banerjee. The democracy in the country should not be affected due to such conditions. The government should take a strong stand. There should be an understanding with the coalition partners. We want the government to go but we want the government to stay well till they stay," said Janata Dal (United) MP Sharad Yadav in the Lok Sabha.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP from Bankura Basuded Acharya said that the present government was weak and cannot protect the people.
The situation was no different in the Rajya Sabha where Leader of Opposition and BJP MP Arun Jaitley was the first to target the government.
"There is a crisis in the government. The minister who presented the Railway Budget has submitted his resignation. We need to know the position. How can the government function? Can't have an unstable government," said Jaitley.
"If Dinesh Trivedi is not the Railway Minister, then who is? What is the future of the Railway Budget? We want an answer," said another BJP MP, Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Prasad's party colleague Tarun Vijay said that the government was not able to carry its allies along on major decision.
"The Government has lost moral authority to rule the country. It's not able to handle internal conflicts as seen in Uttarakhand, can't keep up with allies as seen with the DMK and TMC," said Tarun Vijay.
Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha had to be adjourned till 12 noon following ruckus over the Railway Budget.
Trivedi also arrived in Parliament on Thursday, saying that he had come to attend the Question Hour as only a minister could answer on the budget.
"I am doing my duty, I have to answer questions. It is the minister who answers the questions during the discussion on the budget. I have come here to reply to questions," said Trivedi.
Mamata's stand:
The West Bengal Chief Minister shot off a letter to the Prime Minister seeking dismissal of Trivedi and replacing him by her trusted aide Mukul Roy as Railway Minister after the former presented a bold budget on Wednesday. She made it clear that she would not allow the hike in passenger fares and demanded complete rollback.
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