Disgruntled TMC minister his standpoint different from Suvendu's

After meeting Trinamool Congress TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee for the second time in a week, disgruntled West Bengal minister Rajib Banerjee on Monday said that his situation cannot be equated with that of former party colleague Suvendu Adhikari who recently joined the BJP.

After meeting Trinamool Congress (TMC) secretary general Partha Chatterjee for the second time in a week, disgruntled West Bengal minister Rajib Banerjee on Monday said that his situation cannot be equated with that of former party colleague Suvendu Adhikari who recently joined the BJP. The forest minister refused to tell reporters what transpired at the meeting held in Chatterjee's residence.

Asked if he has any grievance against the TMC leadership, Banerjee said, ''Being a disciplined soldier of the party I will not publicly say anything in this regard. I had previously visited Partha-da's residence in the past. I visited again after being called by the leadership. Not much should be read into it.'' To a question, the MLA of Domjur said, ''My situation cannot be equated with that of Suvendu Adhikari. He has his personal views, I have my personal views. There is no relation between our standpoints. We are two individuals.'' Days after Adhikari resigned as minister, Banerjee had on December 5 claimed that those who keep the leadership ''in good humour'' are brought to the forefront while hard workers are shoved to backbenches. Banerjee had attended a meeting with TMC secretary general on December 14 ''to discuss future strategies''.

''There may be more such meetings in the coming days and more discussions will be held,'' he had told reporters after that meeting..