Tuesday, June 28 2005 10:56 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi talked to Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) General Secretary Prakash Karat this morning (Jun 28, 2005) as part of efforts to mollify the Left parties over the BHEL divestment issue.

"Sonia Gandhi called up Prakash Karat in the morning," All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Ambika Soni said.

Sources in the Left parties said Sonia assured Karat that she would discuss the BHEL divestment issue with her party colleagues on returning from Shimla in a day or two and the concern of the Left would be addressed.

The Left parties created a flutter in the Congress-led UPA on Sunday (Jun 26, 2005) by announcing that they would stay away from the UPA-Left Coordination Committee meetings.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, after receiving a call from Sonia, talked to Karat yesterday (Jun 27, 2005) to defuse the situation.

Congress sources said Sonia was likely to return to Delhi after visiting flood-affected areas in Himachal Pradesh and inclement weather conditions there were delaying the same.

The sources said a meeting of the party's Core Group would be held after Sonia's return to the national capital to find a solution. Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is one of the members of the high-level group, is also abroad.