As Bengal Pradesh Congress leaders seek 6-8 seats from the Trinamool Congress in potential pre-poll alliance talks, the prospects of such collaboration are becoming increasingly uncertain.
In the 2019 general elections, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) secured victory in 22 out of 42 seats, while the BJP, experiencing a meteoric rise, claimed 18 seats. The Congress, in contrast, managed only 2 seats, and the Left drew a blank for the first time since Independence.
Prominent Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) leaders, including Adhir Chowdhury, Deepa Dasmunshi, AH Khan Chowdhury, and Shankar Malakar, have conveyed their demand for 6-8 seats to party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi. According to Pradesh Congress sources, the leaders insist on a dignified allocation, stating, “Anything less than 6-8 seats is not acceptable because the Congress’ strength post panchayat elections has increased in Bengal.”
The Bengal unit of the party has requested seats for Darjeeling, Raiganj, Malda South, Murshidabad, Purulia, and, if possible, Basirhat. This is in addition to Baharampur and Malda North, currently held by Congress members Adhir Chowdhury and AH Khan Chowdhury, respectively.
These seats were once traditional Congress strongholds until the TMC eroded its influence by engineering mass defections after coming to power in 2011, PCC leaders noted. They emphasise the need to reclaim dignity and resist yielding these seats to those who tormented the party over the years.
Bengal PCC leader and former party spokesperson Kaustav Bagchi goes further by outright rejecting the idea of an alliance with the TMC. In a letter to Kharge, he asserts that such an alliance would carry pitfalls, as the TMC leadership is marred by credible corruption charges. Bagchi argues that aligning with the TMC would make the Congress responsible for the corruption against which it has long fought.
Bagchi also underscores that Bengal politics revolves around the TMC, and if an alliance is formed, the BJP would benefit, as opposition votes would consolidate in its favor. At this juncture, he argues, an alliance with the TMC would ultimately aid the saffron outfit.
While the TMC leadership remains tight-lipped about the PCC’s demand, a senior leader in the party indicates there is no intention of offering more than 2-3 seats to the Congress. The leader suggests that, given the current atmosphere, the Congress may struggle to retain even the 2 seats it won last time without TMC support.