Das Munshi and Mitra: Friends again?

Calcutta, Feb. 15: Hours after assuming office at the state Congress headquarters, Priya Ranjan Das Munshi rushed to Somen Mitra’s house this evening to discuss “organisational matters” over tea.

Thirty minutes later, Mitra — Das Munshi’s arch-rival in the party — promised to bury the hatchet. “Priya came to me to discuss organisational matters. I promised to help him sink the differences at the grassroots,” he said from his Lower Rawdon Street flat.

Although in the city through the day, Mitra was missing at the first news conference Das Munshi held as state unit chief this afternoon.

At the one-to-one, however, the two agreed to meet again if problems cropped up in the party. Das Munshi said: “It was a very positive discussion. Somen and his wife treated me to tea and snacks. We agreed to mutually sort out any problem in the party.”

Mitra okayed Das Munshi’s plan to meet all district Congress presidents and chiefs of frontal organisations.

Congress circles felt the meeting would send a message to the rank and file. “Priyada has rightly sought Chhorda’s help. He still wields a lot of clout in the organisation. Barring pockets of north Bengal, Pri- yada hardly has any acceptability,” a PCC functionary said.

Das Munshi loyalists flocked to the airport when he came from Delhi and at the party office.

The Union minister, whose biggest challenge would be to deal with factionalism, made all the right noises. He promised not to make any “drastic changes” in the executive committee, making it clear that the Mitra-loyalists would be re-inducted into the new panel.

He also said he would consult “everybody in the party” before taking a decision. “To me, everybody is important.”

Asked if he would support the Trinamul Congress nominee in the Rajya Sabha elections in April, Das Munshi said: “We’ll discuss it in the party.”

Mamata Banerjee made friendly overtures to the Congress, though she ruled out an alliance before the May panchayat polls. “We have differences with the Congress as it depends on the CPM to run the government at the Centre. But don’t forget we have been running the zilla parishad with the Congress in Malda. In at least six municipalities, Trinamul and Congress have jointly constituted boards to keep the CPM at bay,” she said.

Mamata had floated the Progressive Secular Democratic Front to fight the rural polls and vowed equidistance from the BJP and the Congress.

Das Munshi said no secular front could be formed without the Congress, but showered praise on Mamata. “She is a responsible leader of the principal Opposition party. We are both opposed to the CPM.”