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Friday, May 06, 2005

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National

Sangma to return to NCP

Special Correspondent

Unlikely to give up Lok Sabha membership

NEW DELHI: The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Thursday cleared the air about the plans of the former Lok Sabha Speaker, P.A. Sangma, to return to its fold, stating that he would make the shift from the All India Trinamool Congress as soon as some technical details about his membership of the Lower House were sorted out.

Briefing mediapersons here, NCP spokesman D.P. Tripathi said Mr. Sangma was all set to return and had even decided to give up his Lok Sabha membership.

"We have prevailed upon him and advised him not to do so. There are some technical details that need to be sorted out and it is only a matter of time.''

According to him, Mr. Sangma would also attend the national convention of the party to be held in Surat on June 10 — the foundation day of the NCP.

Mr. Sangma — who was elected to the 14th Lok Sabha on a Trinamool Congress ticket — declared his intent to return to the NCP about a fortnight ago. He had parted ways with the NCP ahead of Lok Sabha elections after it tied up with the Congress.

That he has broken ranks with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) of which the Trinamool Congress is a part became clear this week as he attended proceedings on at least two days despite the ongoing Opposition boycott of Parliament.

Special invitees

Working on the premise that the mandate of the 14th Lok Sabha elections was to "strengthen the unity among secular and democratic forces'', the NCP has decided to invite leaders of major constituents of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and supporting parties to the inaugural session of its national convention.

A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the NCP's senior leadership here on Wednesday night.

Among the invitees are UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat, Communist Party of India general secretary, A.B. Bardhan, Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad, Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Paswan and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader Dayanidhi Maran.

All these leaders have also been invited to address the inaugural session.

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