New Delhi:
NDTV: Mr Trivedi everybody is talking only about politics. How upset are you at what your party has done to you?
Dinesh Trivedi: I am not upset at all. In fact I am very happy with my budget because every Member of Parliament cutting across party lines have come and congratulated me. The aam aadmi on the street, the general feeling is it's a very good budget and more than anything else, I have done my duty to the best of my ability, and I am very happy and I am very relaxed as you can see my face.
NDTV: I can see your face and you are smiling but I am wondering if you are just putting on a brave face?
Dinesh Trivedi: You can't put on a brave face if you are not brave.
NDTV: Okay, you said Mr Trivedi, that every Member of Parliament and many other people congratulated you. But your own party did not. You know that. You know Derek O Brien tweeted, saying that he could not support a fare hike for upper class passengers. You know the Sudip Bandyopadhyay went on record to say that you did not consult the party. Do you feel backstabbed by your party or is it that you guys are playing good cop, bad cop? What is going on?
Dinesh Trivedi: I have done whatever is good for Indian Railways and which is good for the country and Barkha, I have been trained from my childhood. Whatever you do should be good for your country and for me and I have no hesitation in telling and it's not bravado. For me the country comes first and then comes my family and the rest. So I have just no problems. I am very happy about it and I am not even looking at whatever you are talking about. Whether 'A' or 'B' has tweeted, not tweeted, that is not my problem. My thinking is I should have done whatever I did, that's it.
NDTV: Do you stand by what you did? Because you said at your press conference, after you made the announcement in fare hikes, that if there is going to be roll back on hikes, then you may as well roll back on safety. Do you stand by that?
Dinesh Trivedi: Of course, of course. You know Barkha it's a package and I know Railways now little bit. I am concerned about the safety, where is the money for safety? Today I had to borrow 3000 crores from Finance Ministry to balance the Budget of 2011- 2012. Where is the money going to come? And tomorrow even I have to spend money for projects, which we have announced for all different states, including the state of West Bengal. Where is the money going to come?
NDTV: So do I take that to mean Mr Trivedi, and I know you to be a direct person, so I know you will answer me directly. Do I take it to mean that you are ruling out a roll back?
Dinesh Trivedi: I can only tell you that Parliament is in session and I cannot make any comments, which is supposed to be a policy decision, on camera like this. Because at the end of the day today I am the Railway Minister, so I can only tell you, and I think I have told you in no uncertain words, that I will only do what is good for Indian Railways.
NDTV: And you have actually said in no uncertain words that a roll back would mean a compromise in safety. You are at least standing by that?
Dinesh Trivedi: I am standing by that because I don't want to compromise on safety and if the Govt of India is willing to give me extra budgetary support, then it is. I have rolled out my entire plan, my entire plan will go; it's not the child's play. No?
NDTV: Mr Trivedi, when your party says that you did not consult them, you are a unilateralist. What would you say to them?
Dinesh Trivedi: No, it's a fact.
NDTV: It's a fact?
Dinesh Trivedi: You know everybody's notion that Mamata Banerjee interferes; to be fair with her she has never interfered in my work. Never and I respect her for that.
NDTV: So in other words she has never interfered. But when they say that you didn't discuss the Rail Budget with them that is accurate as well?
Dinesh Trivedi: Absolutely accurate. Sure, sure, I didn't consult her.
NDTV: You did not consult her on the fare hike because you wanted to show that you are independent of Writers Building in Kolkata?
Dinesh Trivedi: There is no bravado to show something and not to show something. I did whatever I was asked to. If you are, and I am sure that she would have so much of confidence in me, if you Railway Minister, you are supposed to do whatever is good for Indian Railways. I have taken a conscious decision and that is it.
NDTV: But I want to understand what you mean when you say sure I didn't consult her. Are you saying that you believe that that was a professional thing to do, to leave the party out of it?
Dinesh Trivedi: No consult in what way? When you prepare a budget, budget is supposed to be a confidential document, right, even sometimes the Chairman of the State, sometimes the Prime Minister also doesn't know. Very honestly PM also did not know what exactly I was doing, it's your thing.
NDTV: I want to ask you something because I know you are among the Ministers who skipped the Prime Minister's dinner yesterday. When you present the Budget ..
Dinesh Trivedi: No I was, let me clarify, the invitation was to the party, not the individuals and whoever the party nominated, he or she went.
NDTV: The question I was going to ask was, when you are working on a budget who is the boss for you? Is it the Prime Minister, because you are the Union Minister and the PM heads the Cabinet, or is it Mamata Banerjee, who put you in the Cabinet?
Dinesh Trivedi: See, no, as far as the system goes, that by and large you just tell your intentions that, this is when the Planning Commission is involved, but nobody is involved when I have to consult them on what should be the hike. How much should I do it, it's left to the Railway Minster. So you don't need to consult anybody. And I did not consult anybody including the Finance Minister. This is a loose rumour going around that it was Finance Minister or the Prime Minister, no.
NDTV: So it wasn't Pranab Mukherjee's bite that is what you are clarifying?
Dinesh Trivedi: Not at all. Not at all. Not at all. And I am sure, Pranab Mukherjee is a very wise person, and if I would have asked him, I know his answer would have been, consult your Leader first and then do whatever you want to do.
NDTV: Okay, got that. Dineshbhai, for those who are saying and many tongues wagging in Delhi today, as you know, to those who are saying that Mamata Banerjee is upset with Dinesh Trivedi because he is too close to the Congress, that's why this all has happened. What would you say?
Dinesh Trivedi: Well if you see a snake in a rope, I don't think there is any answer to that.
NDTV: Why do you believe that your party has believed the way it has?
Dinesh Trivedi: I don't know. I have no clue. Because I have been busy with my budget, I have been busy with the Media throughout, after the Budget, I have not had any time even to have a cup of tea.
NDTV: So you are clueless, you don't know why this has happened? Has Mamata Banerjee spoken to you? Has anyone from Trinamool spoken to you since you presented the Budget?
Dinesh Trivedi: No they have not spoken and then you know, I mean, Barkha, please understand I have taken a conscious decision. What is good for the Railway and that's it. And I am a proud patriotic citizen, and for me I will repeat, what comes first is the country. My family,.my child, my everybody comes second. I mean this is a great country where people have sacrificed their lives. They have gone to the gallows yaar, and if you have not taken any lessons from this, and if we have petty politics that we stick to our chairs, that is not the way you run a country. And that is not the way you should be in politics.
NDTV: So your duty comes first, politics comes second?
Dinesh Trivedi: Of course Party comes first. Politics doesn't come; my duty comes. I am in politics because of my duty to the country. I am not here just to warm up the chair and be in the chair at any cost even if the country goes to hell. No, I am very proud and that is the way I have been trained by my parents.
NDTV: What if this position costs you your job?
Dinesh Trivedi: I don't care about the job. I have told you. Bhagat Singh went on gallows to give his life. There are lots of soldiers who die. What is the job yaar? I don't understand this philosophy, nothing is permanent, your life is not permanent.
NDTV: To those who think that you may resign instead of rolling back, because you have just said, what is a job yaar, are you going to resign Mr Trivedi?
Dinesh Trivedi: Nahi, that I am telling when you say, if you lose your job.
NDTV: But are you going to resign, instead of rolling back?
Dinesh Trivedi: But I don't do anything, which is not done in a disciplined manner. I will always do, tomorrow if my Leader tells 'you resign', I will resign. Because after all she has put me here which I said in my speech also.
NDTV: Dinesh Trivedi, I want to ask you and I would appeal you to speak directly, you have been speaking very directly, you said you will do nothing which is not in a disciplined way. If your Leader wants you to resign, you will. Many people believe that Mamata Banerjee has given you only two options, to roll back or to resign. Which one of these options is preferable to you?
Dinesh Trivedi: But the options have not come to me. Let it come. And whatever my conscience tells me at that moment, I will do that. Whatever is good for the country I will do that. You can be rest assured.
NDTV: You know I want to read out a tweet for you from Omar Abdullah and Omar Abdullah tweeting saying, it says, 'all said and done I would hate to be in Dinesh Trivedi's shoes today. Today was supposed to be the highlight of his political career. Poor chap'. Is that how you see yourself Dinesh?
Dinesh Trivedi: No, I thank Omar, he is a very dear friend and he must have really felt; but no, I have done my duty. When you do your duty, you don't feel bad. You feel bad if you have not done your duty. If I had not done my duty, then I would have had a sense of guilt. I am absolutely a free bird today and I am thankful to Almighty. Almighty has given me courage to go ahead and present this kind of budget.
NDTV: Last question, do you still believe that you will be Rail Minister tomorrow morning will you be Rail Minister? Will your Rail Budget get passed?
Trivedi: Can anybody say whether I am going to be alive or anybody would be alive tomorrow? Nothing is certain. So please have a philosophical and spiritual approach to life. Do your part of the duty to the best of your ability and that's it. This is a country, which has taught so much of spirituality. And if you have not learnt, then you haven't learnt life. You have wasted your time. You have wasted the birth also.