New Delhi:
On a collision course, Mamata Banerjee finally produced a white paper on Railways' performance under Lalu Yadav. And the white paper says, Lalu's success story as Railway Minister which earned him much acclaim, even from business schools is only 50 per cent true.
The Report says, during Lalu's tenure Railways showed Rs 88,669 crore as cumulative cash surplus before paying dividends. The White Paper says the correct figure should be Rs 39,411 crore.
Lalu claimed Railways had an investible surplus of Rs 66,804 crore, but the white paper says it is just about Rs 20,268 crore.
The Report says the discrepancy in figures is because of a different accounting procedure adopted in the past 5 years. The Report also notes that the best performing years in the Railways have been between 1991 and 1996.
"It's only a status paper. I respect everybody and the report was important for the financial health of the Railways," said the Railway Minister, Mamta Banerjee.
The former Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad reacted predictably, "I have never gone begging to the government to ask for money for the Railways ... the PM has praised my work, so why should I believe any minister?"
While the BJP welcomed the white paper, for the Congress it was a tight ropewalk between two allies.
"There is no doubt that the health of Railways went up during Laluji's time but whether it went to the extent he claimed is debatable," said Satyavrat Chaturvedi, Congress MP.