Leaders like Nehru are beyond political boundaries: Mamata Banerjee

KOLKATA: Terming Jawaharlal Nehru as the "architect" of modern India and a " socialist", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today paid rich tributes to the country's first Prime Minister on his 125th birth anniversary, saying great leaders like him are beyond political boundaries.

"Of course there are political boundaries... but those (leaders) who will be remembered (for contributions to the country) for all times to come cannot be bound by political boundaries," Banerjee said while speaking at a programme to mark Nehru's birth anniversary at the state Assembly lobby where a portrait of former Prime Minister was garlanded.

Banerjee's comments came at a time when she has been invited by Congress President Sonia Gandhi for an event in Delhi on Jawaharlal Nehru next week.

Sources close to the Chief Minister said Banerjee was expected to leave for Delhi on November 16 to attend the programme and for other engagements. The Chief Minister said Nehru's mantra of "Unity in Diversity" was important and of much relevance for the country's progress.

Speaker Biman Banerjee, Congress Legislature party leader Mohammad Shorab and the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Surjya Kanta Mishra also paid tributes to Nehru.

The Chief Minister also spent time with school children at her Assembly chamber on the occasion of Children's Day and also unveiled a portrait of Matangini Hazra at the Assembly.

"People like Matangini Hazra, who laid their lives for the nation, are an example for us to follow," she added.