Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and TMC's Derek O'Brien
Credit: PTI Photos
New Delhi: Congress Lok Sabha leader and West Bengal unit president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Friday apologised to Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha floor leader Derek O'Brien for calling him a "foreigner" even as he alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led government is creating roadblocks for Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in the state.
Chowdhury spoke to O'Brien and posted on 'X', “I conveyed my regrets to Mr Derek O'Brien for a word inadvertently uttered by me to him as a foreigner.” Sources said O'Brien accepted the apology.
After O'Brien spelt out Trinamool's stand that it was Chowdhury who was responsible for the collapse of alliance in West Bengal, Chowdhury told reporters in Siliguri, "Derek O’Brien is a foreigner, he knows a lot of things. Ask him."
Chowdhury's remarks attracted criticism in social media with Tipra Motha chairman Pradyot Manikya, a former Congress leader, posting on 'X', "how is this inclusiveness? I knowDerek O'Brien and to question his nationality is really showing how intelligent this man is! Sadly such men are at the helm of decision making."
Separately, Chowdhury claimed that Congress was facing problems in organising public meetings in West Bengal for the Rahul Gandhi-led yatra.
"In some places, we are facing roadblocks as we are not getting permission to organise public meetings, citing exams. The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has faced problems in the Northeast, including Assam, and now it is facing problems in TMC-ruled West Bengal as well. We were denied permission to hold a public meeting in Siliguri. We expected better cooperation from the state government. Anyways, the route and the itinerary of the Yatra remain the same except for a few changes," he said.
However, Trinamool Congress said the administration in West Bengal is free of political influences.
"All opposition parties conduct programmes in the state, nobody faces any problems. The administration must have taken the decision as there are board examinations in schools," senior Trinamool MP Santanu Sen said.