Kolkata: Notwithstanding the intense speculation on Trinamool Congress (TC) chief Mamata Banerjee's possible return to the Congress, the West Bengal BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) leadership today (Dec 13, 2004) expressed confidence that she would not desert the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) to go back to her parent party.

"The TC chief told me that the report on her return to Congress is misleading and she has no intention to leave NDA and join Congress," West Bengal BJP president Tathagata Roy said in Kolkata.

The speculation gained ground following Banerjee's recent visit to Defence Minister and WBPCC (West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee) chief Pranab Mukherjee's residence in Delhi.

Stating that this kind of propaganda also affected BJP, Roy said the TC supremo had told him that she had gone to Pranab Mukherjee's house only for a social cause. Since she could not attend the wedding ceremony of Mukherjee's son, she had gone there to wish the new couple.

The State BJP president said that his party considered her as the true anti-Left force. "She will not re-join Congress which is in power with the support of CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist)," he said.

To buttress his point, Roy said that the Trinamool Congress chief had sent party heavyweights like city Mayor Subrata Mukherjee and TC chief-whip in the Assembly Sobhandev Chattopadhyay to the meeting addressed by BJP president L K Advani in Kolkata on Friday.