Trinamool Congress general-secretary Mukul Roy, who was recently questioned by the CBI in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam, met party supremo Mamata Banerjee on Monday amid reports of differences between the two.
The closed-door meeting, which lasted for close to an hour, took place at Nabanna. Soon after the one-to-one, Roy left for New Delhi.
Trinamool insiders said the meeting was equally important for both the leaders. For Roy, it was a way to show that his relation with the party chief had not soured. For Mamata, the meeting was crucial to keep the party general-secretary in her fold and to find out what he told the CBI, sources said. Both Roy and the chief minister were, however, tightlipped over what transpired at the meeting.
“The meeting was a kind of a balancing act for Roy. After he was grilled by the CBI on Friday, he avoided the chief minister and, instead, held two press conferences at two different places. This gave rise to speculations that he would also skip the extended core committee meeting of the party the next day. On Sunday, he broke his years’ old routine by not visiting the home of the chief minister in Kalighat. Instead, he stayed put at his office in Nizam Palace. Had he avoided meeting her on Monday before leaving for Delhi, there would have been more speculations about their differences,” a member of the state Cabinet said.
“Monday’s meeting was probably Mamata’s way to find out Roy’s pulse,” another member of the state Cabinet said.
{{/usCountry}}“Monday’s meeting was probably Mamata’s way to find out Roy’s pulse,” another member of the state Cabinet said.
{{/usCountry}}On Sunday, Roy had described himself as “part and parcel” of the Trinamool and added that he would participate in the party’s campaign for the bypolls. “I have no problem with my organisation, I am very much part and parcel of Trinamool. I am the founder general-secretary,” Roy had told reporters.