Unwilling to quit

Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee had firmly set her mind on withdrawing support for the United progressive Alliance (UPA), but her ministers and MPs were definitely not keen. At the crucial TMC meeting on Tuesday evening in Kolkata, when Banerjee first asked former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi about his opinion, he said there was no way the party could now backtrack. It had upped the ante too high and the only option now was to honourably withdraw total support. This pleased Banerjee, as it was in line with her view, but she soon snapped at first-time MP Kunal Ghosh, who suggested only the six TMC ministers be pulled out and the party could continue to support the government from outside. “This is your first time as an MP, isn’t it?” Banerjee said. Senior leaders like Saugata Roy and Sudip Bandyopadhaya, who also had similar views, were snubbed. Others soon got the message and by the time they stepped out, all MPs were preaching to the converted. Ghosh even tweeted that “the PM should resign.” The unhappy ministers rushed back to the Capital next day and reportedly worked late into the night for the next two days, possibly clinging onto the last few days at the helm of power.