In a political turn of events, Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has pointed fingers at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of sabotaging the potential INDIA alliance in the state ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
Chowdhury stated, “The chief minister herself doesn’t want an alliance in West Bengal because she would have problems. It is she who ruined the prospect of an alliance. If you listen to her speeches you would see she herself doesn’t want it,” during a press interaction in Murshidabad district.
This accusation follows Mamata Banerjee’s recent statement at a political program where she outlined her party’s strategy, asserting that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) would combat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in West Bengal, while the INDIA alliance would be upheld in the rest of the country.
Chowdhury, emphasizing the Congress’s commitment to its own preparations for the upcoming election, stated, “We are going ahead with our own preparations. We don’t care who is coming with us or leaving us. We have defeated the TMC and the BJP in Murshidabad district multiple times. We will do it again.”
Earlier, Congress MP Abu Hashem Khan Chowdhury (Dalu) had hinted at an alliance, mentioning that the TMC had agreed to concede two seats to the Congress. However, the TMC retaliated, accusing the Congress of handing over all seats in Murshidabad district to the BJP.
“Some Congress leaders, after going around with CPI(M) leaders, are now towing the same lines. Chowdhury may sell his conscience, we won’t. The Congress has been reduced to zero in the state assembly. I don’t know who is instigating him. Why did he hand over all the seats in Murshidabad district to the BJP,” remarked Firhad Hakim, state minister.
Meanwhile, mysterious posters demanding ‘alternative politics’ in West Bengal appeared in Kolkata and other locations, remaining anonymous. BJP legislator Suvendu Adhikari commented, “BJP is the only alternative in West Bengal.”
