Prime Minister Narendra Modi telephoned BJP MLA Mukul Roy on Thursday to inquire about the health of his wife Krishna who is undergoing treatment for Covid-19 at a private hospital off the EM Bypass here.
The call from Modi, BJP sources said, assumes significance as Abhishek Banerjee, de facto number 2 of the Trinamul Congress, had paid a visit to the hospital on Wednesday to enquire about the health of Krishna and spent some time with Roy’s son Subhranshu.
After Abhishek’s visit, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh also went to the hospital on Wednesday. The sudden concern in the BJP camp about Krishna’s health has drawn everyone’s attention.
“Krishnadi has been unwell for a long time and has been on ventilation. Suddenly, everyone seems to be concerned.… The PM could’ve called up Mukulda earlier as well or Dilipda could have visited her before. But all these happened only after Abhishek paid a visit to the hospital,” a state BJP leader said.
Sources close to Roy said Modi’s phone had come around 10.30 on Thursday morning and the two spoke for about a couple of minutes about Krishna’s health.
“The Prime Minister had called up my father since he is a worker of the BJP. I can’t say anything more about it,” Shubhranshu told The Telegraph.
He added that BJP’s leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, and the party’s national president J.P. Nadda had called up earlier to enquire about Krishna’s health.
Although Subhranshu — a Trinamul turncoat who lost as a BJP nominee from Bijpur in the Assembly polls — didn’t share details of the calls from BJP leadership, he was effusive in his praise for Abhishek and the chief minister.
“My mother is like Abhishek’s aunt. She loves him a lot. His gesture must become a practice in Indian politics,” Shubhransu said.
“The Honourable CM has also enquired about my parents’ health through several sources and I’m very happy,” he added.
Mukul also tested positive for Covid, but he is better now and has gone back to his Kanchrapara home.
Subhranshu’s praise for Abhishek and Mamata caused jitters in the saffron camp as it willy-nilly endorsed Mukul’s displeasure with the scheme of things in the state BJP.
“The party leadership knows that Mukulda is unhappy with several things... That is why efforts are made to assuage his concerns,” said a source.
