New Delhi:
After seething publicly over the vote on the Women's Bill, Mamata Banerjee has clarified that she supports the Bill, but was angry that her party was not informed by the Congress that the Bill would be put to vote on Tuesday in the Rajya Sabha. (Watch: Upset, not taken into confidence: Mamata)
"In Rajya Sabha, we have two members but we were not informed ...there was a coordination gap, we were not informed...we support the bill," said Banerjee to NDTV in Parliament on Wednesday.
Banerjee's new calm could be attributed to Sonia Gandhi's comments. In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said she couldn't understand Banerjee's stand on Tuesday.
"Well, I can only say I was told that when it came up in Cabinet, all three coalition partners were very supportive. They immediately said yes. DMK has been supportive from the beginning, so has Sharad Pawar been. Mamata was in the Cabinet and I was told by the person next to her that she was actually very enthusiastic and she almost stood up to welcome. I don't quite understand what has happened. I hope she will understand," said Gandhi. (Watch: Full interview)
Banerjee, who is a key ally of the Congress', was so upset on Tuesday that her party abstained from voting on the Women's Bill in the Rajya Sabha.
On Wednesday, in an attempt to downplay the rift, Banerjee, who is the Railways Minister said she felt the Prime minister should have held an all-party meeting on Tuesday before the bill was put to vote.
The Women's Bill, passed by the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday evening amid drama and chaos, sets aside 33 per cent of the seats in Parliament and state Assemblies for women. Its most prominent opponents are Mulayam and Lalu Yadav, who have threatened to withdraw support to the government over the issue. They feel the bill does not protect the interests of Dalits and Muslims. (Read: Rajya Sabha passes historic Women's Bill)
On Tuesday, however, Mulayam denied reports that he is working on a no-confidence motion against the government. At this point, Mulayam said, he doesn't have the numbers for a no-trust vote. (Read: Slighted Yadavs plan their next attack)
"In Rajya Sabha, we have two members but we were not informed ...there was a coordination gap, we were not informed...we support the bill," said Banerjee to NDTV in Parliament on Wednesday.
Banerjee's new calm could be attributed to Sonia Gandhi's comments. In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said she couldn't understand Banerjee's stand on Tuesday.
"Well, I can only say I was told that when it came up in Cabinet, all three coalition partners were very supportive. They immediately said yes. DMK has been supportive from the beginning, so has Sharad Pawar been. Mamata was in the Cabinet and I was told by the person next to her that she was actually very enthusiastic and she almost stood up to welcome. I don't quite understand what has happened. I hope she will understand," said Gandhi. (Watch: Full interview)
Banerjee, who is a key ally of the Congress', was so upset on Tuesday that her party abstained from voting on the Women's Bill in the Rajya Sabha.
On Wednesday, in an attempt to downplay the rift, Banerjee, who is the Railways Minister said she felt the Prime minister should have held an all-party meeting on Tuesday before the bill was put to vote.
The Women's Bill, passed by the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday evening amid drama and chaos, sets aside 33 per cent of the seats in Parliament and state Assemblies for women. Its most prominent opponents are Mulayam and Lalu Yadav, who have threatened to withdraw support to the government over the issue. They feel the bill does not protect the interests of Dalits and Muslims. (Read: Rajya Sabha passes historic Women's Bill)
On Tuesday, however, Mulayam denied reports that he is working on a no-confidence motion against the government. At this point, Mulayam said, he doesn't have the numbers for a no-trust vote. (Read: Slighted Yadavs plan their next attack)
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