Slamming the Trinamool chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s move to sideline the Congress and emerge as the key Opposition’s face against the BJP, the Shiv Sena on Saturday said that Mamata’s bid to push the grand-old party away from national politics and create a new Opposition front along lines of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was tantamount to strengthening the “fascist” ruling party at the Centre.
“Mamata’s politics does not augur well for the Congress. Though it is true that TMC finished the Congress, the BJP and the Left in West Bengal, Mamata’s effort to push the grand-old party away from national politics and create a new Opposition front along lines of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was tantamount to strengthening the fascist forces in the country,” the Shiv Sena said.
In an editorial published in its official mouth-piece “Saamana”, the Shiv Sena said, “We can understand Prime Minister Modi saying the BJP would wipe out the Congress from the political map of the country, because that is a part of the current ruling party’s agenda. But, any thought of finishing the Congress which is fighting Modi and his fascist tendencies poses a serious danger to the country”.
“There are no two opinions about the fact that the weakening of the Congress during the last ten years is a serious cause for concern. But, the attempt to prevent the derailed Congress from getting back onto the tracks reflects the destructive mindset of some people,” the editorial said.
The Sena's criticism of Mamata's efforts to occupy the Congress' space by negating the very existence of the UPA comes as a big boost to the beleaguered Congress at a time when it is fighting not just the BJP but also the detractors within and outside the non-BJP parties.
Batting for the UPA strongly, the Shiv Sena made no bones about its displeasure over the statement made by Mamata in Mumbai: “What’s UPA?.There’s no UPA”. “The BJP under Modi’s leadership may not need the NDA, but the Opposition needs UPA. Forming a parallel opposition alliance to the UPA is akin to strengthening the BJP. The question is who should lead the UPA. Those who are opposed to the Congress leading the UPA should come out openly rather than indulging in shadow boxing. This kind of shadow boxing will only lead to suspicions,” the Sena mouth-piece said.
“Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi should come out and speak about the issue of UPA leadership. The need of the hour is to strengthen the UPA. They should take the lead in strengthening the UPA,” the “Saamana” editorial said.
Taking strong exception to poll strategist and Mamata’s advisor Prashant Kishor’s statement that Congress’s leadership of the Opposition was not the “divine right of an individual, especially when the party has lost more than 90 per cent elections in last 10 years”, the “Saamana” editorial said : “No one has divine right of Opposition leadership. No one knows as to what will happen in 2024. There was a time when people felt that the BJP would remain in the Opposition all its life but its fortunes changed”.
“Today, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are fighting against those who are trying to undermine them politically. Time will tell as to who will lead the UPA,” the Sena mouth-piece said.
Hitting out at senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad for his statement that he did not see the Congress winning 300 seats in the 2024 general elections, the Sena mouth-piece said: “Azad has predicted that the Congress’ performance in the 2024 will be disappointing. This is a curse coming from a senior Congress leader who has enjoyed the fruits of power when the Congress was ruling the country. He is a part of the G-23 group of disgruntled party leaders, all of whom have enjoyed power in the past. What have these leaders done to improve the strength and prospects of the Congress? As much as the ruling BJP thinks, these leaders also feel that the Congress will put up a miserable performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls”