Days after a Congress leader said they "won't beg" for seats, Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she will fight the Lok Sabha elections alone after failed seat-sharing talks with the Grand Old Party, an INDIA alliance partner.
After Mamata Banerjee's announcement, Congress quickly went from "won't beg" to "cannot imagine an alliance without her".
The declaration of going solo for the mega Lok Sabha polls by Mamata Banerjee comes a day after reports said she criticised the Congress for causing delay in discussions for seat-sharing in West Bengal, citing "unjustified" demand for 10-12 constituencies when her party was willing to share only two.
Reports claimed that Mamata Banerjee conveyed the stance during a closed-door organisational meeting of the party's unit of Birbhum, a district considered a stronghold of the TMC.
Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that she has "always said" she will fight alone in Bengal.
"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 Banerjee said.
Congress Goes From 'Won't Beg' To 'Can't Imagine Alliance Without Mamata'
Responding to her decision, Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications, Jairam Ramesh said they "cannot imagine the INDIA alliance without Mamata"
"Mamata Banerjee said that we want to defeat BJP and we will do anything to defeat the BJP...Rahul Gandhi clearly said that Mamata ji and TMC are a very strong pillar of the INDIA alliance. We cannot imagine the INDIA alliance without Mamata ji...INDIA alliance will fight like an alliance in West Bengal...Congress president has announced several times that all INDIA alliance parties are invited to join Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra...," Jairam Ramesh said.
Banerjee's announcement comes days after Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury called her an "opportunist" and said that the Grand Old Party would contest the Lok Sabha elections without her assistance.
While Congress's Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury maintained that the party wouldn't "beg" for seats from Bengal's ruling party, Rahul Gandhi said Mamata Banerjee was "very close to him" and that such comments won't matter.
"Mamata Banerjee is very close to me. Sometimes our leaders say something. Such comments won't matter," Rahul Gandhi said on Tuesday when asked about Chowdhury's remarks.
In the 2019 elections, the TMC bagged 22 seats, Congress won two, and the BJP secured 18 in the state.
The Trinamool Congress had decided to abstain from a recent INDIA bloc virtual meeting and emphasised on the necessity for Congress to recognise its limitations in West Bengal and allow the ruling party to spearhead the state's political battle.
The TMC had previously allied with the Congress in the 2001 assembly polls and the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. The two parties again fought the 2011 assembly polls together, leading to the ousting of the CPI(M)-led Left Front government after 34 years.
(With PTI inputs)
