KOLKATA: A day after attending a breakfast hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, two NCPI MPs from West Bengal's Murshidabad district, Abu Taher Khan and Khalilur Rahman, on Saturday met Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari at the state secretariat Nabanna.
Khan, the Murshidabad MP, and Rahman, the Jangipur MP, reached Nabanna around 11.30 am and discussed issues related to development works in their respective constituencies.
According to NCPI sources, the two MPs also raised issues related to problems arising from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Murshidabad.
The meeting came amid speculation over the political position of Khan, Rahman and Behrampore MP Yusuf Pathan after the three Muslim MPs, along with other NCPI MPs, skipped two consecutive NDA meetings. Their absence had triggered speculation about a possible return to the Trinamool Congress.
On Friday, a group of rebel Trinamool Congress MLAs, who describe themselves as the 'real Trinamool' and are led by Ritabrata Banerjee, Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, also met Adhikari at Nabanna and discussed issues related to the SIR exercise across the state.
Khan, Rahman and Pathan had earlier expressed dissent within the party, adding to speculation about their political future. They had said they skipped the NDA meetings because of their alleged discomfort over the BJP's opposition to Muslims.
On Friday, Modi held a closed-door meeting with around 40 NDA parliamentarians at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg and urged MPs to maintain legislative discipline and treat Parliament as a temple of democracy.
Of the 20 NCPI MPs, Dev Adhikari, the Ghatal MP, was absent due to prior commitments. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is yet to decide on the status of the 20 NCPI MPs following their defection from the Trinamool Congress.
“We are representatives of the foremost minority community of India and Bengal. Minorities are being oppressed and deprived in various ways in the state. As the elected head of the country, he had to be informed. Which is what we did,” Khan told reporters in New Delhi after attending the breakfast.
“The Prime Minister has said those who have been with the NDA for the last 20 years or even one year are all family members. He said we will work hard for the development of Bengal... and the eastern, northeastern states,” the NCPI leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said after the breakfast hosted by Modi.
“We are really impressed by the way he wants to take India forward. He really wants the development of the country,” she claimed.
“The Prime Minister chatted with all of us, spoke to each of us.... He asked everyone to contribute. He also wanted to hear about our development ideas and how they will be implemented,” said Satabdi Roy, MP from Birbhum.
Mathurapur MP Bapi Halder said he was particularly impressed by Modi's attention to social media, including platforms such as Instagram, and his reported emphasis on engaging younger people.