By IANS,
Kolkata: Trinamool Congress MP Kabir Suman, who is having frequent run-ins with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, Saturday visited the private hospital where Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu is admitted and said he was learning forbearance from the veteran leader.
“I am still learning forbearance from Jyoti Basu. In his time, he faced a lot of criticism but he never reacted to it. He always maintained silence. I doubt if any other politician have faced similar criticism in his life. I am also now trying to master the art of keeping mum,” Suman told mediapersons after emerging out of the hospital.
The Lok Sabha member from South 24 Parganas’ Jadavpur constituency had drawn Banerjee’s ire for accusing a section of party leaders of misusing funds allocated for development work.
Banerjee, also the railways minister, had termed Suman as a guest in her party and later Magsaysay award winner Mahasweta Devi and other members of the city intelligentsia close to the Trinamool ironed out the differences.
Recently, Suman also kicked up a storm after composing and rendering a song eulogising pro-Maoist People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA) leader Chattradhar Mahato.
Banerjee immediately distanced her party from Suman’s stand on Mahato saying the Trinamool did not endorse the singer’s view. She said Suman was an artist and an outsider in the party who was at liberty to express his personal opinion through music.
Friday, Suman attended a railway programme where Banerjee was also present, but he seemed isolated.
Talking to the media after coming out of the hospital, Suman seemed nostalgic as he talked of his personal recollections of Basu.
“When I came back from Europe and was planning to bring out my own musical album, one day I went to attend a political gathering where Jyoti Basu was the chief speaker.
“He came and addressed the audience in such a way that everyone present over there clapped and listened to his speech,” Suman said.