NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s already chaotic government was thrown into more disarray Thursday after the rail minister was reprimanded by his own party after announcing a small fare hike.
The fighting exposes rifts inside the Trinamool Congress party, a powerful regional group that controls the rail ministry and heads the government in the state of West Bengal. The group has grown increasingly rebellious against the Congress-led government’s legislative agenda, leading to fears it could bolt the governing coalition and force an early election.
Railways Minister Dinesh Trivedi announced the first railway fare hike in eight years Wednesday, only to be shot down moments later by Congress party leader Mamata Banerjee, a populist politician who said she would not allow any fare hike in the 600 billion rupee ($12 billion) rail budget.
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