New Delhi, Aug 11: Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee along with her party MPs tonight boycotted Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's dinner for NDA MPs on the eve of the vice presidential poll. "We are boycotting the dinner," Banerjee said here saying, "How can we attend it when our party is continuing agitation on the issue of bifurcation of Eastern Railway zone." The dinner was organised to acquaint MPs with the poll procedure in view of the large number of invalid votes in last month's presidential polls, NDA sources said.
The ten-member Trinamool Congress has already decided to keep away from voting in the vice presidential poll to protest the cabinet decision not to go back on division of Eastern Railway zone. Rebel TC member Ajit Panja would, however, vote for the NDA nominee. Banerjee along with her party MPs will stage a day-long dharna here tomorrow to protest against the bifurcation of Eastern Railway.
Bureau Report