New Delhi: Leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, on Sunday alleged West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee is helping the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by opposing the grand old party.
Continuing his outburst, Chowdhury said the TMC chief is “becoming a middleman” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Looks like they had an agreement that 'Delhi yours, Kolkata ours' otherwise she wouldn't have spoken useless things about Congress,” he added, ANI reported.
Voting For Cong Same As Pressing NOTA Button: TMC’s Abhishek Banerjee
Chowdhury’s criticism came after TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee claimed that voting for the Congress and Left Front would be in no way different from opting for the NOTA button.
Wooing the electorate ahead of the October 30 by-poll to four assembly seats, the TMC leader said that casting ballots for the Congress and Left Front might “strengthen the hands of BJP”.
Asserting the Congress and Left Front had firmed up alliances with the aim to stop the TMC supremo from winning the elections, Banerjee said that the two parties eventually ended up as “losers”.
Alleging the Congress had over the past seven years only conceded defeat to the BJP all over the country, he said the TMC supremo thwarted all challenges posed by communal and undemocratic saffron party.
Expressing confidence of the TMC making a “4-0 sweep” in the by-elections, Banerjee showered praises on the West Bengal Chief Minister.
“The entire country is eagerly waiting for the results of bypolls in these four constituencies. People of the country want a leader like Mamata. That is why they raised slogans such as 'Desh ki netri kaisi ho, Mamata didi jaisi ho',” he said during his campaign in Khardah, PTI reported.
The TMC general secretary further said the West Bengal Chief Minister is emerging as the “undisputed leader” from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and will defeat the BJP in the next Lok Sabha polls.
“Our party is making its presence felt all over the country. It has established its place among the top four to five national parties. We will win the assembly polls in Goa in a few months from now; we will dislodge the Biplab Deb government in Tripura 2023,” he said.
The TMC leader alleged the BJP “harasses” anyone, who airs views against them with the central agencies’ help.
“They had summoned me several, times, interrogated me for nine hours. You can interrogate me for hours and hours but that will not stop me from speaking against you (BJP leaders). If you slit my throat, I will still shout Jai Hind', Jai Bangla'. Truth is on my side,” he said.
TMC, AAP ‘Marginal Players’ In Goa Polls: Chidambaram
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and former union home minister P. Chidambaram said the TMC and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will be “marginal players” in the 2022 Goa Assembly elections.
Asserting the TMC’s entry into Goa “appears to be an imposition from the top that is based in West Bengal”, Chidambaram said: “I do not know the TMC's motive in trying to start a unit in Goa by encouraging defections from other parties.”
Responding to a poser on former chief minister Luizinho Faleiro quitting the Congress and joining the TMC, he said defections have been the bane of Goa politics.
“I was sorry to see Mr Luizinho Faleiro join the band of defectors. The people, especially the voters in his Assembly constituency, resent his defection. Hence, his defection has not dented our worker-base in the constituency,” he told PTI in an interview.
Chidambaram, who is the Congress’ senior election observer for the assembly polls next year, added the grand old party is best positioned to defeat the BJP and form the next government in Goa.
“We enter the election arena with the intention of winning the election and forming a Congress government in 2022,” he said.