Apparently buoyed by the grand success of July 21 Trinamool Congress rally in Kolkata from where she gave out the call to “oust BJP andsave the country,” Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is all set to take the national plunge on July 31 when she will deliver a lecture at the elite St. Stephens’ College in Delhi to begin with.
In what, the TMC leaders believe, is sure to afford her a “truly national, secular image,” Banerjee is also likely to attend aprogramme organised by the Christian community in the national Capitalon the same day, sources say.
At the country’s premier institution the Chief Minister is likely to do well on the inclusive philosophy of Nehru-Gandhi school. She is expected to drive home how Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru preached and practiced the “true Indian ethos,” and how an India perceived by them was the true India, party sources said.
Mamata Banerjee truly believes that Tagore, Gandhi and Nehru stood for an India where “hatred has no place” and where “non-violence and mutual trust is the buzz word,” a senior leader who often accompanies the Chief Minister said.
After addressing the elite institution Banerjee is also likely to meet the leaders of the opposition outfits. In a bid to unite the anti-BJP forces Banerjee will meet these national leaders at the central hall of Parliament, sources said.
When asked as to whether she already has talks with some of them the TMC leader said she is already in touch with a large number of leaders from “Bihar and UP in the North to Tamil Nadu and Kerala in the South.”
On whether she will also meet the left leadership, Trinamool sources said the Chief Minister has already expressed her willingness to invite the left parties at the January 19 all-party rally at Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata which is an indication enough that she is not averse to meet any leader who has anti-BJP views.
On whether her move may irk the Congress leadership which has in its CWC meeting already projected itself as the rallying point for the anti-BJP and secular forces the leader said, “each party is working in its own way to oust the BJP. When the goal is the same then there should not be any problem for the parties to work for it.”