Mamata Banerjee didn't cross limit, will remain valued ally: Congress

NEW DELHI: Seeking to keep Mamata Banerjee in good humour ahead of Presidential poll, Congress today said she had not crossed the limit by suggesting Prime Minister's name for the President's post and played down the threat by Trinamool Congress to pull out from government.

"Mamata Banerjee is our valued ally and will remain our valued ally," Shakeel Ahmad, AICC in-charge of West Bengal, told reporters.

Asked whether the Trinamool Congress supremo had crossed the limit in suggesting Singh's name as a Presidential candidate, he said "she had suggested a few names and I don't think she has crossed the limit".

"Suggesting the name of the Prime Minister was a little bit unwelcome for Congress people but her statement was neither unethical nor undemocratic," Ahmad said.

Congress leaders had been unhappy with Banerjee for going public with the discussions she had with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on the Presidential issue.

Banerjee had rejected Pranab Mukherjee and Hamid Ansari --Gandhi's suggestion as possible presidential nominees -- and had announced Singh, former President A P J Abdul Kalam and former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee as her choice of candidates after talks with SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid sought to downplay the threat by Trinamool Congress to withdraw its ministers from the Government by saying that Banerjee had her political priorities and the Congress respected them.

"The relation that we share, they (Trinamool) have their own vision about it and they work accordingly. But with the same vision in mind they entered into coalition with us," Khurshid said here.

"We respect them and Mamata has a long history with the Congress. She had given a lot of energy to the youth Congress and she has formed her government in Bengal after a long political battle," he said.