Dramatic developments took place at the Centre over the post of Union Minister for Railways, though the ministry remains a Trinamool Congress preserve. Dinesh Trivedi had to quit and Mukul Roy has replaced him. Trivedi’s resignation has been viewed in different ways. Some supported his resignation as he defied the party line by hiking passenger fares. The other view is that he was a victim of party leader Mamata Banerjee’s autocratic ways of functioning. One thing is clear. As Railway Minister, Trivedi was not to push the party agenda. He had prepared a budget which was not only approved by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee but also praised by the Prime Minister. Mukul Roy’s entry may be seen as a bid to repair the breach in Congress-TMC relations. It was coalition dharma. The TMC’s threat to quit the UPA would have taken away its second largest constituent. An alliance with the Samajwadi Party would have saddled the Congress with a baggage of demands.
Trivedi apparently presented a rational budget. It was necessary to generate revenue to modernise the Railways and invest in safety. Mamata was however adamant and refused to see these compulsions. Politics overrode economic sense and social good. The whole affair was unsavoury as it smacked of political blackmail. Mamata Banerjee had long been at odds with the UPA but had forced it to accept her changes in view of the numbers game in parliament. In her party, there is no room for dissent. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh goes out of his way to placate her in the face of growing opposition against his party. One must not forget that Mukul Roy’s candidature for the Railway Minister’s portfolio was rejected by the Union Cabinet some time ago.