Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi Resigns

Union railway minister Dinesh Trivedi finally resigned from his post after Trinamool Congress Chief Mamata Banerjee put a question mark on the fate of the Railway Budget and asked the Prime Minister to remove Trivedi as the Railway Minister.

Trivedi sent his resignation letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday morning. According to reports, Trivedi was forced by Mamata to quit as the Railway Minister after the TMC leaders objected the railway budget demanding rollback of hikes in passenger fares.

Last night Mamata had sent a letter to the prime minister asking him to remove Trivedi and suggested Mukul Roy's name for the railway minister post just a few hours after he had presented a bold Railway Budget.

The PM is likely to accept Trivedi's resignation and accept Mamata's demand. After sending the letter to the PM, Trivedi said that he will participate in the question hour in Parliament. Meanwhile, MOS Railways Muniyappa to return to Delhi from Bangalore.

He said that the TMC wanted him to resign from the post. He decided to hike fares as country comes first above the party. He said that he had consulted the common men of the country not the party chief before preparing the railway budget.

Meanwhile, Trivedi told a local news channel on Thursday morning that he had not resigned yet. "I have not resigned yet, but if the party wants then I will. Mamata made me the railway minister, she may choose to remove me," he told.

For the first time in a decade, Trivedi was the only Railway minister, who dared to hike in passenger fares. He justified the fare hikes saying he has done what was required. It was not a political budget, but an economic budget.

Trinamool's Rajya Sabha MP Mukul Roy, who was earlier rejected by Manmohan Singh for the railway candidature, is likely to replace Trivedi. Roy arrived in Delhi following the latest development.

Roy may be sworn in on this weekend after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presents the Union Budget on Friday.