With 44-strong team,Mamata enters Writers’ Buildings today

The Congress,which will join the government,has been offered two cabinet berths and five ministers of state. Banerjee has not been able to keep her promise of a “small” team — her 44-strong ministry,with 37 Trinamool members including herself,will be as big as that of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s.

As per rules,the number of portfolios allotted cannot be larger than 15 per cent of the size of the Assembly,which in the case of Bengal,is 294. The TMC’s election ally,the Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI),opposed to the Congress in principle,will not join the government.

The swearing-in will begin,as per the TMC’s request to Governor M K Narayanan,at 1.01 pm at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata tomorrow.

Afterward,Banerjee might walk the half-kilometre distance to Writers’ Buildings,accepting the greetings of the thousands who are likely to line the streets to catch a glimpse of the new chief minister.

Police have erected barricades,and are preparing to form a human chain to keep the crowds at bay. Unlike after successive Left victories,there will be no reception for Banerjee and her team at Writers’ Buildings from the staff and employees.

Among those who will be sworn in are former FICCI secretary general Amit Mitra,Subrata Mukherjee,Firad Hakim,Subrata Bakshi and Partha Chatterjee — all from the Trinamool.

From the Congress,there will be D P Roy,Abu Hena,Abu Naser Khan Chowdhury (a brother of former Congress stalwart A B A Ghani Khan Chowdhury) and Sabina Yasmin. Abhijit Mukherjee,the son of Pranab Mukherjee,stayed out apparently after the Union finance minister advised the newcomer to work for the people first.

Yasmin and Sabitra Mitra of the Trinamool — both from Malda — will be the only two women in Banerjee’s ministry,despite the overwhelming support she got from women across the state. Four retired bureaucrats who served the Left regime but contested on Trinamool tickets will be part of the ministry. The ministry is likely to have five Muslim faces,four members from the SC/ST community,and a representative of the backward Bengali Matua sect,Manjul Krishna Thakur. The Matuas have sizeable numbers in about 50 Assembly constituencies across the state.