Budget Session: Congress, Trinamool meet today to finalise Opposition floor strategy

The TMC has been protesting against the recent arrest of their leader in Lok Sabha Sudip Bandyopadhyay and party MP Tapas Paul for alleged complicity in the Rose Valley chit fund scam. On demonetisation, the party has been demanding a two-minute silence in Parliament for the people who have died in the aftermath of the note ban.

“We will meet on Monday morning before the House convenes,” said Trinamool Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien adding that the strategy meeting that had a clutch of political parties during the last session may this time have only TMC and Congress. The meeting has been called by Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad.

However, it is the political vendetta issue that may be the sticking point with TMC leaders describing Congress stance on the matter as “neutral”. “It is easier for them to back us on the issue of demonetisation and second the demand for a two-minute silence,” said a senior TMC leader.

There has been visible cooperation though between the two parties on the floor of the Rajya Sabha. On Thursday, when Derek O’Brien spoke during the motion of thanks for the President’s address, Azad, Ahmed Patel and Jairam Ramesh sat in depleted Congress benches — many MPs are away in their respective states for current Assembly elections — and could be seen making encouraging comments and nods.

TMC has moved a couple of amendments to the President’s address, but Derek O’Brien said that the party will not press for their passage “out of respect for the President”.