Kolkata: In an act of "Gandhigiri", West Bengal Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi succeeded bringing arch political rivals Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee face to face for the first time on Sunday night to sort out the Singur issue.
The meeting of the two leaders took place for the first time in eight years of Bhattacharjee's tenure as chief minister, thanks to the Governor.
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Ever since he took over as the Governor of West Bengal in 2004, Gandhi has played a pro-active role in responding to situations that turned critical - either in Nandigram or in Singur.
The Governor's initiative in arranging talks between the state government and the Trinamool Congress-led 'Farmland Protection Forum' for three days earned him the respect of all concerned.
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The Governor's strident criticism of the Marxist cadres' armed recapture of Nandigram had raised the hackles of the state's ruling CPI-M which even went as far as demanding abolition of the post of Governor.
The Governor's hard-hitting statements on police firing in Nandigram on March 14, 2007, the recapture of Nandigram, his visit to Mamata Banerjee during her 26-day fast at Esplanade made him unpopular with the Marxist leaders some of whom accused him of overstepping his jurisdiction.
Some veteran CPI-M leaders had even branded Gandhi as 'Trinamool's Governor'.
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