Manmohan Singh will bridge ties with TMC: Farooq Abdullah

Bangalore - Commenting over the recent differences between United Progressive Alliance (UPA) with key partner Trinamool Congress (TMC), Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullah has said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would "bridge the ties" with its key ally.
 
Talking to reporters here, Abdullah said: "Soon things between them would be sorted out."
 
"I think, they are going to patch up, these things do happen. Sometimes there are irritants around but I am sure that Prime Minister is going to be able to bridge the thing," he added.
 
Abdullah further said that it was important to find ways to overcome differences.
 
"I don't think we should find our faults now, we should find out how to patch up rather than finding faults," he said.
 
The alliance of the TMC and the Congress had run into troubled waters on several issues like the passage of bill for the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the domestic retail market or the recent issue of the Lokpal Bill.
 
Strains were visible during the parliamentary debate on the anti-graft Lokpal Bill last week, when TMC did a volte-face and opposed certain provisions in the government-draft of the legislation.
 
Despite several attempts by the government, the TMC has so far refused to budge from its stand on the issue, leaving the Congress party fuming. The TMC and Congress have voiced their differences on several platforms in the past on the issue of price rise too.
 
Reacting to the Election Commission's ban on certain statues in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh state, Abdullah said it was the poll panel's prerogative.
 
"Well I think the Election Commission has right to decide what he thinks or should be done and they have done it, it is what Election Commission wants to do for fair election," said Abdullah.
 
Ahead of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, the Election Commission decided to cover the statues of state Chief Minister Mayawati and her party symbol 'elephant' erected at parks and other public places across the state in recent years.
 
Last year, Mayawati had inaugurated the 33-acre park named after B. R. Ambedkar in Noida.
 
The park, which was built from the government exchequer by spending Rs 650 crore has statues of elephants, B. R. Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram and Mayawati herself.