Mamata Banerjee says TMC will contest Lok Sabha polls on its own

KOLKATA, INDIA – JULY 7: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee addresses during student credit cards distribution event at Netaji Indoor Stadium on July 7, 2022 in Kolkata, India. (Photo by Samir Jana/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will fight the Lok Sabha elections in the state on its own.

Expressing confidence in her party, the TMC supremo said they will alone defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“I had no discussions with the Congress party. I have always said that in Bengal, we will fight alone. I am not concerned about what will be done in the country, but we are a secular party and in Bengal, we will alone defeat BJP. I am a part of the INDIA alliance. Rahul Gandhi’s Nyay Yatra is passing through our state, but we have not been informed about it”, Mamata was quoted to as saying by news agency ANI.

The development comes days after Banerjee had alleged at a rally in Kolkata that although she proposed to let Congress contest 300 of 543 Lok Sabha seats and leave the rest for regional parties, her advice was ignored at the INDIA group’s meetings.

On Monday, Banerjee targeted the CPI(M) from her interfaith rally in Kolkata but did not name the Congress.

“It was I who coined the name INDIA. But I am sorry to say that whenever I attend the meetings, CPI(M) controls them. This is extremely sad. I feel insulted. I fought them (Left) for 34 years when they were in power in Bengal. I will not follow their advice,” she said.

The next day on Tuesday, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi stressed on the fact that he and his party share “a very good relationship” with Banerjee, adding that critical remarks from either side will not affect seat sharing talks for the coming Lok Sabha polls.

TMC leaders have alleged several times in recent weeks that Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury continues to target the chief minister although she said at an INDIA group meet on December 19 that she will not field candidates from Berhampore and Malda South seats that the Congress controls.

Chowdhury, who has been winning from Berhampore since 1999, has said alongside CPI(M) leaders that the INDIA model will not work in Bengal because they are opposed to both the TMC and the BJP.

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