Kolkata: Trinamool and NCPI took sharply divergent positions on the BJP-led NDA’s legislative agenda on Saturday, with the Mamata Banerjee camp urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to halt two proposed bills, even as NCPI pledged support to all govt legislation.In a letter to the PM, Trinamool Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien opposed the proposed delimitation and Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment (FCRA) bills and demanded an all-party meeting before either was introduced.The timing of the letter was significant. It came as the rebel Trinamool MPs, now with the NCPI, held their first parliamentary party meeting and formally resolved to back the NDA in Parliament.Although the proposed delimitation bill is not listed for the upcoming monsoon session, O’Brien said Trinamool remained wary, citing the Union govt’s last-minute introduction of the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Bill in 2019.“Delimitation concerns the very structure of India’s polity and the future of our democracy. The Union govt must refrain from using cloak-and-dagger tactics while introducing such a vital piece of legislation,” he wrote.On the proposed FCRA amendment, O’Brien described the legislation as “draconian”, arguing it would give the executive excessive powers over voluntary organisations and adversely affect reputed charitable institutions while raising constitutional concerns under Articles 19 and 26.Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee had earlier also written to Modi opposing both bills.In contrast, NCPI parliamentary leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay announced after the faction’s first parliamentary meeting that it would support the NDA’s legislative agenda.“Today, the NCPI parliamentary party met for the first time. We have decided to support the NDA govt and participate in discussions on all Bills brought before Parliament,” he said.Bandyopadhyay also said he had held a one-hour meeting with Modi and met Union home minister Amit Shah twice over the past two days, urging them to integrate the newly inducted MPs into the NDA. “NCPI has now emerged as the second-largest party in the NDA,” he said.
