Amid the heated political confrontations dominating the Monsoon Session of Parliament, an unexpected moment of humour and nostalgia unfolded outside Makar Dwar on Thursday as Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee exchanged playful remarks over Mamata Banerjee’s political journey.
The interaction took place while Kalyan Banerjee was staging a protest outside Parliament over the alleged merger of TMC MPs with the NCPI. As Priyanka Gandhi walked past the protest site, she jokingly remarked, “You took them from Congress to TMC,” triggering laughter among those present.
Banerjee responded with a smile, reminding her that “Mamata Banerjee was thrown out of Congress in 1997,” referring to the circumstances that eventually led the West Bengal Chief Minister to establish the Trinamool Congress.
The conversation continued in a cordial tone, with Priyanka Gandhi acknowledging the support her father, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, had extended to Mamata Banerjee during her early political career. “Rajiv Gandhi always promoted Mamata Banerjee,” Priyanka Gandhi said, a statement that Kalyan Banerjee readily agreed with.
The brief exchange quickly attracted attention in Parliament’s corridors, offering a rare glimpse of friendly political banter despite the sharp differences between the Opposition parties on several issues.
The moment also stood out against the backdrop of a turbulent Parliament session marked by repeated protests, suspensions, and intense exchanges between the ruling NDA and Opposition members over multiple national issues.
