Union minister and BJP leader Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti on Friday heaped praise on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for ushering in development in the state and assured the Centre's assistance in the endeavour.
Incidentally, Niranjan Jyoti's comments came on a day when the Trinamool Congress chief along with key non-BJP leaders, attended Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's swearing-in ceremony at Patna.
"Known for her Mamata (affection), a mother can remain hungry to feed her child. I am sure, the person whose is named Mamata and is a woman, is endeavouring for the progress and development of the state," Niranjan Jyoti said at an event here.
"The state is moving on the path of development under Mamata Banerjee. We will work together in her endeavour to develop Bengal," she said.
The Left Front and the Congress have time and again accused the ruling Trinamool of having a tacit understanding with the BJP and Niranjan jyoti's comments are likely to add fuel to that.
While there had been a furious war of words between the Trinamool and BJP since the Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's interaction with Banerjee during his visit to Bengal earlier in the year, prompted the Left and the Congress to cry hoarse alleging a 'Modi-Mamata bonhomie'.
With the 2016 assembly polls on the horizon, Banerjee has been upping the ante against the Modi led BJP government at the centre targeting it over several issues including "intolerance".