New Delhi:
After drawing flak for her Lalgarh rally in which the Maoist front organisation, the People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) took part, Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress is in denial.
Speaking to NDTV's Prannoy Roy, senior Trinamool leader and Health Minister Dinesh Trivedi insisted it was not a joint rally with the Maoists.
"I want to challenge Arun Jaitley. He said there were wanted Maoists leaders around. Has he seen them? The Prime Minister of India has appealed to the separatists. Chidambaram has appreciated Geelani in Parliament. Does it mean that Chidambaram is a separatist? This rally wasn't organised by Maoists but by intellectuals," Trivedi said.
But as Mamata Banerjee and her party insist that her Lalgarh rally had no connection with the Maoist frontal organisation PCPA, pictures taken by television crews show otherwise. PCPA leader Manoj Mahato led people to the rally but stayed away from it. He said his presence might trigger police action. (
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Just days before the rally, top Maoist leader Kishenji openly said he lent all support to the rally.