Bengal minister skips meet, reveals TMC rift

KOLKATA: West Bengal forest minister Rajib Banerjee’s unexplained absence from the state cabinet meeting on Tuesday, a day after his rapprochement talks with party secretary general and senior minister Partha Chatterjee, indicated a rift between Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress. Three other ministers — Gautam Deb, Rabindranath Ghosh and Chandranath Sinha — were also absent from the meeting but were busy in day-long party work.
Forest minister Banerjee has been invited to the state Assembly on Wednesday along with Chatterjee, who is also the parliamentary minister, and other ministers for the inauguration of the annual winter flower show.It is not clear whether he will attend, sources indicated.
Banerjee has been skipping state cabinet meetings for nearly three months now. Chatterjee has already spoken to him twice, first on December 13 and again on Monday, and sources indicated the party will again speak to him.
Deb, sources said, had informed the CM about his inability to attend the cabinet meeting due to the on-going “Bangodhoni” outreach programme. Ghosh had also informed the CM that he had to attend the ‘Duare Sarkar’ programme, while Sinha told reporters he was busy with Mamata Banerjee’s programme to be held on December 28 and 29 in Bolpur and could not reach Kolkata.