Mamata Banerjee likely to withdraw ministers from UPA

New Delhi/Kolkata, September 16: Sources have told NDTV that Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is likely to withdraw ministers from the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre over the introduction of Foreign Direct Investment in multi-brand retail and hike in diesel prices. The Trinamool Congress is now likely to give only outside support to the ruling coalition, sources added. Ms Banerjee will hold a meeting with her party's top brass on Tuesday to take a final decision.

The Trinamool Congress has six ministers at the Centre and 19 members in Parliament.

Ms Banerjee has rejected the decision to allow 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail, which would allow super-chains like WalMart to partner with a local company and sell directly to the Indian customer. She also wants the government to rollback a five-rupee increase in diesel prices and revoke the decision to limit to six the number of subsidized gas cylinders available to each household. The West Bengal Chief Minister had on Friday issued a 72-hour deadline to the government for the move to allow FDI in multi-brand retail to be rolled back.

Ms Banerjee's Facebook page says "loot cholchhe loot (Loot is going on)" and that she cannot accept reforms against the people's interest.

"We are not in favour of toppling the government. But they should not forget the 'Lakshman Rekha' of the alliance. We will not agree with any anti-people decisions. We have given 72-hour deadline to rethink... if you roll back, it's good. But if not, then be ready to face the consequences," she said at the rally yesterday organised to protest against the recent decisions announced by the government.

"UPA isn't made up of just one party. Why weren't other parties in UPA consulted on fuel hike," she asked at the rally.

Reiterating her demand for a roll back of the FDI and the fuel hike, Ms Banerjee said she was shocked at how the country was being sold. "The price of human beings is declining, and every other price is rising... Without fuel subsidy, how will poor families bear the burden?" she said. "This may be digestible to one part of the government, but not to us," she added.

Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati, who has provided support to the Centre at critical moments, too has slammed the Congress-led government for taking "decisions against the common man."

Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party has also said that he won't allow FDI in retail in his state. The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's party has bailed out the Congress-led coalition government on several occasions. But party chief Mulayam Singh's recent alignment on several issues with the Left and other parties has given rise to much speculation that there are efforts to open a non-Congress, non-BJP Third Front before the 2014 general elections.

The new retail policy was cleared by the cabinet last November, but was abandoned after Ms Banerjee threatened to quit the UPA coalition. Since then, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been criticised by industry and international media for ignoring the urgent need for reform despite a sagging economy and signals of foreign investors' concerns. Defending the FDI decisions, the PM had said yesterday that they were designed to improve the investment climate and bring in foreign investment to reduce debt. He also said that the hike in diesel prices effected on Thursday was "a step in the right direction."

Commerce Minister Anand Sharma has stressed that states have the right to reject the multi-brand reforms. "It is an enabling legislation," he said, adding that, "while we respect Mamata Banerjee's prerogative to implement or not implement...equally it is the prerogative of other states to have it," he said on Friday.