Pranab Mukherjee, Brinda Karat

New Delhi, Dec. 1: Brinda Karat and some Left MPs today interrupted Pranab Mukherjee long enough to provoke a fusillade from the boiling veteran.

In contrast, Biman Bose treated the Congress-led Centre with kid gloves in Calcutta.

Between the fireworks in Parliament and the fine print in Calcutta lie apparent differences in the way the CPM high command and the Bengal leadership is viewing the Congress, which was dumped by Prakash Karat despite the reservations of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and others in the state unit.

Perhaps keeping in mind the wounded feelings of the Bengal leadership, Prakash Karat was muted on the Centre on Sunday when he was in Calcutta.

But the situation changed on Monday in Delhi when the Left and the BJP came together to attack the Centre. Today, similar scenes played themselves out in Parliament again with the Left attacking the Centre, this time on price rise.

Sitaram Yechury raised the issue during Question Hour, to which finance minister Mukherjee replied that necessary steps were being taken but the gap in the supply of pulses could not be bridged because of shortage in the international market.

As Mukherjee was replying, Brinda Karat asked: “What about sugar? It is Rs 40 a kg.”

Mukherjee started replying but was interrupted by some CPM members. A stickler for House rules, Mukherjee said interruption was a “wrong practice” but Brinda Karat and the others did not relent.

“I am not going to accept this. This is indiscipline. It is not permitted here,” Mukherjee chided the Left MPs.

Brinda Karat objected to his remarks, prompting Mukherjee to stun her with an outburst: “Please do not show your temper here, show your temper somewhere else.”

The veteran minister squeezed in a point that it was not even a question fielded by Brinda Karat.

In Calcutta, the CPM continued to distinguish between the “Centre” and Trinamul. “If the Centre wants to teach Bengal a lesson by imposing Article 356 (which provides for President’s rule), the people of the state are ready to face the challenge,” CPM state secretary Biman Bose said.

Bose clarified the “challenge was meant for Mamata, not the Centre”.