Lalu, for his part, sought a House committee probe quickly to clear the “confusion”. “As the railway minister the UPA had given me a free hand... The Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi allowed me to work freely... I got so busy with the Railways that I lost touch with people... If I had fudged the figures, I am ready to apologise...” While careful not to attack the Congress or Mamata, the RJD chief suggested that it was his rival in Bihar and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar who was behind the White Paper idea.

“Those who were not pleased to see me at Rail Bhavan... (they) are misinterpreting the last part of the budget... They can't get over Lalu phobia... He who has failed (to bring a turnaround in the Railways) is telephoning for a White Paper,” Lalu said.

Speaking during the discussion, BJP leader Ananth Kumar accused Mamata of “having a version of speech that she had uploaded on the website but later not included in her speech”. He said that Mamata admitted this.

Earlier, Mamata assured JD(U) MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lallan’ that she would look into scams alleged by him in Lalu’s tenure. In contrast, she made no attempt to allay Lalu’s fears. “I respect you,” was the maximum she said.