In a significant political development, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo, Mamata Banerjee, announced on Wednesday that her party would contest all Lok Sabha constituencies in the state independently. This decision comes in the wake of a reported setback in the seat-sharing negotiations with the Congress, a key ally of the INDIA bloc.
The announcement followed a closed-door meeting between Mamata Banerjee and party leaders in the TMC stronghold of Birbhum district. During the meeting, Banerjee reportedly instructed party leaders to prepare for contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha polls on their own and discouraged thoughts of further seat-sharing talks.
A rift between the Congress and TMC has unfolded over seat-sharing discussions leading up to the elections. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the state Congress chief and a vocal critic of TMC, has been engaged in a war of words with Mamata Banerjee. Chowdhury labeled Banerjee as an “opportunist” and asserted that the elections would not be fought at her mercy.
Responding to these remarks, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi downplayed the criticism, stating that Mamata Banerjee’s influence wouldn’t dictate the election outcomes. Gandhi emphasized that the negotiations on seat-sharing were ongoing and stated that such comments wouldn’t disrupt the political landscape.
The Congress expressed disappointment over the TMC’s proposal to share only two out of the total 42 constituencies in the state for the national elections. Mamata Banerjee has been advocating for a performance-based quantifier to determine seat-sharing arrangements among INDIA bloc allies.
A senior TMC leader revealed, “Our party supremo clearly said that we don’t need to think about seat-sharing talks with the Congress. She said that the party had offered two seats to them. But the Congress at times is demanding 10-12 seats.”