Rahul Gandhi to meet Bhunia, Adhir on Aug 6

Congress vice president will talk to WBPCC president Adhir Chowdhury, Leader of Opposition Abdul Mannan and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Manas Bhunia to resolve the impasse.

The Congress high command feels that the problem should be ironed out as it is giving out a wrong message to people. Bhunia on Wednesday met Rahul Gandhi in Delhi and apprised him of the situation. Gandhi first asked CP Joshi, AICC general secretary in charge of West Bengal to take up the matter and later decided to meet the trio on August 6. On July 4, Speaker Biman Banerjee appointed Bhunia as the chairman of PAC as the chairman for the post is selected from an MLA from the principal Opposition party.

On that day Mannan gave the Speaker a letter requesting him to appoint Sujan Chakraborty of CPI(M) as the chairman of PAC. When the Speaker announced Bhunia’s name, Congress MLAs staged a walkout.

Later, Adhir Chowdhury said AICC had suggested Chakraborty’s name as he had requested him to send his name for the post. Bhunia said he would tell Gandhi about how both Mannan and Chowdhury had been pressurising him. “It is unfortunate that Congress MLAs had staged a walkout against one of their colleague,” he said adding that Chakraborty’s name was never discussed in the CLP meeting.

Bhunia has not yet replied to the showcause notice issued by WBPCC. “It will be replied to on time,” he said.