Adhir Ranjan says TMC in dilemma over seat-sharing with INDIA bloc; party hits back

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Mamata Banerjee should say a clear ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

West Bengal Congress president and MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday trained guns at the Trinamool Congress over the issue of seat sharing within the INDIA alliance.

“They (TMC) are in a dilemma. There should be an official yes or no from the party supremo (Mamata Banerjee). They are not saying officially that the process of forging the alliance has ended. Because they are in a dilemma,” Chowdhury said, according to ANI.

He added that a section within the Trinamool Congress believes that if the party contests alone, without the INDIA alliance, then the minorities of West Bengal will vote against them.

“One section of the TMC wants the alliance to continue. Another section is in another dilemma that if the alliance is given more importance in Bengal, then the Modi government will use ED, and CBI against them… Because of these two dilemmas, the TMC has not been able to make a clear decision… Maybe there are some talks in Delhi, but I don’t have any such information…” Chowdhury told ANI.

Chowdhury’s remark came amid reports that the Congress party had revived talks with the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC for an alliance in the state.

Earlier on Friday, the Congress said that the seat-sharing talks between the party and TMC were back on track after the latter had initially claimed that it would go solo in the LS elections in April-May.

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The Congress has recently sealed an alliance in Uttar Pradesh with the Samajwadi Party. In the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress will contest 17 seats and the Samajwadi Party will contest 63 seats.

In Maharashtra, the party is in alliance with Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray’s Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP. Talks on finalising LS seats are currently underway between Congress and its INDIA bloc allies in the state.

Out of the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, AAP will contest four and Congress will contest three.

Mamata Banerjee had last month said the talks with the Congress failed after the latter refused an offer she made. She also pointed to delays in finalising a seat-sharing agreement. She had also vowed to not ally with the Congress till it was an alliance with her bitter rival CPI(M).

Adhir Chowdhury should first clear his stand: TMC MP

Responding to Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s remarks, TMC MP Santanu Sen said that West Bengal Congress president should first clear his stand.

“Adhir Chowdhury should first clear his stand. Everyone knows that for the past few years, he has been doing everything possible to malign the anti-BJP force TMC and give oxygen to BJP…” Sen told ANI.

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