Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee (PTI photo)
Mamata Banerjee's first election rally with Anna Hazare in Delhi ended up as a disappointing solo act with the Gandhian activist giving it a miss. His aides cited health reasons.
"We are waiting for Anna. I had work but I still came, as I had promised," the Trinamool Congress leader said at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan, visibly upset at the activist's absence.
At the sprawling venue, which was awash with posters of Anna and Mamata, the absence of one of only two star speakers was glaring and reflected in the rapidly thinning crowd. Sources said till the very end, the Trinamool expected Anna to arrive, even after his spokesperson said, "He is not well, he has congestion."
A leader of Mamata's party, Mukul Roy, met the 76-year-old at the Maharashtra Sadan in Delhi, and later evaded the media.
Anna's no-show is being seen as a huge embarrassment for the West Bengal chief minister, who had counted on him to give her campaign for next month's Lok Sabha polls a national appeal.
Ms Banerjee is fielding candidates in at least eight states apart from West Bengal and is expected to name candidates for all seven seats in Delhi.
"I don't care who supports me. I don't want anything for myself," she declared in what appeared to be a message to Anna.
Anna recently overcame his aversion to supporting political parties and joined the Mamata bandwagon, drawn, he says, by her simplicity, austere life and leadership qualities.
He was widely expected to make another appeal today for support to Ms Banerjee as Prime Minister at the Ramlila ground, where he had engineered a massive campaign against corruption in 2011.
Ms Banerjee, who launched her campaign for the Lok Sabha elections last month with a call to her party to look towards Delhi, counted Anna's support as a major win.