This Article is From Mar 15, 2012

Like a soldier, will stay at border outpost till replaced: Dinesh Trivedi

 Like a soldier, will stay at border outpost till replaced: Dinesh Trivedi
New Delhi/Kolkata: Railways Minister Dinesh Trivedi said on Thursday that he would stay "at the border outpost" till he was replaced or asked to leave by his party chief Mamata Banerjee or the Prime Minister.

"I am a soldier. I will stay at the border outpost until and unless I am replaced. But if my Prime Minister and my leader (Mamata Banerjee) order me to go, I will go," the minister told a Bangla channel.

"I don't have any fascination for the chair," the Trinamool Congress leader, who attended parliament on Thursday, said.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee clarified in the Lok Sabha that the Prime Minister had not received any resignation letter from Trivedi, contrary to reports.

Trivedi left on Thursday morning for the parliament, adding that he would try to pass the budget.

"Till I am here as the railway minister, I will attend the question hour. I will also try to pass the railway budget," Trivedi said.

Trivedi, who Wednesday presented the first rail budget in 10 years to hike passenger fares, was summoned by Banerjee late on Wednesday after he made defiant statements disregarding the party's diktat that he roll-back the rail tariff hike.

Contradicting Banerjee's claim that the party was not aware of the decision regarding fare hikes, Trivedi said: "I had earlier given indication about it (fare hike). But I will not divulge any details of the discussion as I am a loyal soldier of the party."

Even as the 61-year old leader expressed disappointment over the strife within the party, he put up a brave face and stood by his decision on the fare hike and overall railway budget.

"It would have been better if I would have been criticised within the party than publicly. I think that then it would have been better," Trivedi said.

"I stand by my decision. The decision was taken to improve the condition and safety of the railways," he added. "Whatever my conscience has said I have done that. I am proud of my decision. I don't have any regret," Trivedi added.

Mukul Roy, minister of state for shipping and Trivedi's Trinamool Congress colleague, also reached New Delhi on Thursday, fuelling speculation that he could be the next Railways Minister.
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