West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee is likely to campaign for Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi in Kerala’s Wayanad. The development signals improved relations between the TMC and the INDIA-bloc.
Priyanka Gandhi is making foray into electoral politics from the Wayanad seat, which was earlier won by her brother Rahul Gandhi in the recently concluded general elections.
Rahul Gandhi won the Lok Sabha elections from Rae Bareli and Wayanad—both by margins of over three lakh votes. He has retained the Uttar Pradesh constituency.
Earlier, TMC and the Congress didn't contest the Lok Sabha elections in alliance in West Bengal. Reports had surfaced that the two parties had disagreement over seat distribution in the state. However, the two parties remain allies on the national level under the INDIA-bloc alliance.
Ahead of the recently concluded general elections, TMC chief Banerjee had suggested that Priyanka Gandhi must contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi.
Also, the ties between the two parties worsened after Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury spoke against Banerjee. The TMC later blamed Chowdhury for its decision to contest the Lok Sabha polls alone in West Bengal.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury lost the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency to TMC's Yusuf Pathan. He had earlier won the seat five times in a row.
In the recently concluded general elections, the BJP won 240 Lok Sabha seats – 32 short of the majority mark. The party formed a government in alliance with the Telugu Desam Party, Janata Dal (United) and Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena.
