Communication gap led to abstention: Mamata

Trinamool Congress chief and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee attributed her party's abstention from voting on the Women's Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha to a "communication gap" and said she was committed to the Constitutional amendment.

"In Rajya Sabha, we have two members. We were not informed... there was a communication gap," Banerjee told reporters outside Parliament. During the meeting of allies with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, it was decided that an all party meeting would be called (on the Bill) where her party could also raise the issue of including minorities in women's reservation, Banerjee said.

"But no (all party) meeting was called later. We had no information," said Banerjee who was fuming on Tuesday and directed her Rajya Sabha members not to vote. While defending her decision to abstain from voting, she said, "Our party is committed to the Bill. We will do it."

Congress President Sonia Gandhi had expressed surprise over the Trinamool's abstention, saying Banerjee had been "enthusiastic" when the bill was discussed in a Cabinet meeting. When pointed out that Left was taking all the credit for the successful passage of the Bill in the Upper House, Banerjee said the Left never wanted a quota for women in the Rajya Sabha as it was against letting common women enter the Upper House.

Trinamool MP Dinesh Trivedi had said his party chief wanted the views of the Dalits, Other Backward Classes and Muslims to be taken on board. "But unfortunately that did not happen. Trinamool Congress is for debate and discussion," he had said.