Trinamul and Congress leaders congregated in Malda on Wednesday to pay obeisance to Congress patriarch A.B.A. Ghani Khan Choudhury, fondly known as Barkat-da, at his ancestral house on the occasion of his 97th birth anniversary.

Leaders of both parties paid homage together at Ghani Khan's tomb in Kotwali.

Even after 17 years of his demise, the reference of Ghani Khan is drawn by both the Congress and Trinamul to pull votes in a district with more than 50 per cent minority population.

On Wednesday morning, Ghani Khan's brother A.H. Khan Choudhury, the Congress MP of Malda South, the MP's son and former Congress MLA Isha Khan Choudhury, and party leader Mottakin Alam stood side by side with Mausam Noor, a Rajya Sabha MP of Trinamul, and Dulal Sarkar, the vice-president of Malda district Trinamul as they paid homage to Ghani Khan.

The bonhomie between the rival leaders was palpable. Noor handed over flowers to the Congress MP to offer those to Ghani Khan's tomb.

Sarkar, another Trinamul veteran, recalled “Barkat-da” in front of Congress leaders at Kotwali Bhawan, where Ghani Khan had lived from childhood till his death in 2006.

In Malda town, Trinamul and Congress leaders paid homage to Ghani Khan in front of his life-sized statues.

Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury, chairman of the Trinamul-run Englishbazar municipality, paid respect to Ghani Khan's statue at Brindavani Grounds. Trinamul held an event in the Congress leader's memory.

Congress leaders paid homage to another statue at Rathbari, observed the day at Town Hall and distributed cakes among people.

Both parties, however, staked claim on Ghani Khan's political legacy.

Isha Khan Choudhury said Ghani Khan believed that only the Congress could form a stable, democratic and secular government at the Centre.

Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury, the civic chairman, said Trinamul supremo Mamata Banerjee had Ghani Khan's blessings.