TMC Decides Against Further Seat-Sharing Talks with Congress

The Trinamool Congress has decided against pursuing further discussions with the Congress regarding the seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls within the INDIA bloc. A senior member of the West Bengal Cabinet, also a veteran leader of the party, revealed that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee deems further talks with the Congress futile for two key reasons.

The first reason cited is the perceived absurdity of the Congress' demand for eight to ten seats in West Bengal. The state Cabinet member argued that such a demand is unreasonable given the Congress' diminished vote share of only three percent in the 2021 state Assembly polls. With no representation in the state Assembly and only two MPs in the Lok Sabha, the Trinamool Congress views the Congress' demand as an unwarranted overreach.

The second reason Mamata Banerjee is disinclined to engage in further discussions with the Congress is the suspicion that the Congress leadership is more inclined towards a seat-sharing agreement with the CPI(M)-led Left Front than with the Trinamool Congress. Consequently, the leadership of the ruling party in the state sees no need to continue negotiations with the Congress.

Party insiders revealed that Mamata Banerjee expressed displeasure upon learning that the Congress and CPI(M) had decided in principle to support the All-India Secular Front (AISF) candidate Naushad Siddique in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls for the Diamond Harbour constituency. This constituency, situated in South 24 Parganas district, is currently represented by Trinamool Congress' General Secretary and Chief Minister's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee.

Recently, Mamata Banerjee hinted at the Trinamool Congress fighting alone in West Bengal while maintaining the Opposition INDIA bloc at the national level. State Congress President and veteran Lok Sabha member Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury responded by challenging the Chief Minister to contest against him in the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency in Murshidabad district, where he has been a five-time MP.

(With Agency Inputs)