The hair-line fissures in INDIA alliance further degenerated into a wide crevice with Bengal Congress president Adhir Chowdhury reacting sharply to reported direction given by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to Trinamool Congress cadres to start preparing for contesting in all the 42 Lok Sabha seats of the State. INDIA stands for Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance.
In a brainstorming session Banerjee, who is also the TMC chairperson told the top leaders of Murshidabad district to make preparations to defeat Chowdhury a five time MP from Behrampore.
“Don’t think that Adhir Chowdhury is undefeatable … he is not a factor if you fight united … he can be defeated and we will defeat him this time round,” Banerjee reportedly told her comrades in an in-house meeting. Chowdhury has been a five-time MP from Behrampore which constitutes one of the three parliamentary seats from Murshidabad district — the other two being Jangipur and Murshidabad.
When asked for his reactions Chowdhury told reporters, “those who think that I am not a factor, it’s okay. I don’t care about anyone. Our leaders have already spoken. I have reached here only by contesting and winning. We know to contest and win.”
Though he would not name the Chief Minister he said, “there are some people who are trying to harm the Alliance… It will gradually become clear to the people as to who is serving the interests of the BJP.”
Banerjee’s pep talk to her party comrades against the backdrop of ongoing seat-sharing talks between the two parties where the Congress has reportedly placed a demand of 6-8 seats whereas the TMC has offered only 2 seats of Behrampore and Malda South which the Congress presently retain. “I will only want the elective representatives including the MLAs and organizational in-charges to resolve their differences and talk in unison towards the interest of the party … if you do so then Adhir Chowdhury is not a factor … we will win all the 42 seats,” Banerjee reportedly told her party leaders not only indicating that INDIA alliance was not on her mind but also that TMC would contest from all the 42 seats including the ones presently held by the Congress.
Early this month the Chief Minister had told the media that in Bengal the TMC would solely take on the BJP because only her party was capable of containing the saffron wave and in rest of the country INDIA would fight as a united force.
When asked to comment on Chowdhury’s comments TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that while his party was loyal towards the cause of opposition unity it was the Congress which was looked insincere.
“If you think of taking advantage of apparent political fluidity by putting up a hard bargain … make absurd demands for seats presumption would that you are insincere towards the alliance … and if so then you should be reminded that the TMC is sufficient to fight alone and with the elections as it did in 2021 Assembly elections reducing you to Zero,” he said in apparent reference to the Congress.
Another Bengal Minister Snehashis Chakrabarty said, “TMC is ready to fight in all the 42 seats and our workers are raring to go … Mamata Banerjee had from the outset spoken about seat-sharing talks which no other party took seriously … now there is no point sitting back … The TMC will do remarkably well if it fights alone.”