'Sometimes Govts Last For A Day': Mamata Banerjee Hints I.N.D.I.A May Stake Claim, Says 'We're Waiting & Watching'

Mamata Banerjee stated that she will not be attending Modi's oath-taking ceremony as the NDA formed the government "illegally and undemocratically".

Hinting that the opposition's I.N.D.I.A bloc could take over the reins at the Centre soon, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee stated that governments "sometimes last only for a day". The Bengal Chief Minister also stated that she would not be attending Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony today as her party cannot extend them best wishes since NDA is forming a government "illegally and undemocratically".

Banerjee's remarks came a day before Modi's swearing-in ceremony and after TMC's win against the BJP in West Bengal. In the Lok Sabha elections 2024, TMC won 29 out of the state's 42 Lok Sabha seats, up from 22 seats in the previous polls. BJP's tally, on the other hand, went down from 18 in 2019 to 12 this time.

The Bengal CM had dropped the hint about the possibility of opposition forming the government at the Centre while speaking after a Trinamool Parliamentary Party meeting on Saturday, NDTV reported.

'If INDIA Hasn't Staked Claim Doesn't Mean Nothing Will Happen'

According to the report, Mamata Banerjee took a dig at the BJP for not crossing the majority mark and having to form a coalition government, and said: "Those who spoke of 400 (Lok Sabha seats) could not get even a simple majority on their own. Don't think just because INDIA has not staked claim (to form a government), nothing will happen. We are waiting and watching because things change. Ultimately, it will be a new INDIA government, but let them be for a few days. Sometimes, governments last only for a day... Anything can happen, who knows if this government will last even 15 days?"

After BJP failed to cross the majority mark, Modi and the BJP is dependent on its allies this time to form a coalition government with Chandrababu Naidu's TDP and Nitish Kumar's JDU. In the Lok Sabha polls, the saffron party won 240 Lok Sabha seats, falling short of the majority mark by 32 seats. 

On the contrary, the I.N.D.I.A bloc clinched 232 Lok Sabha seats, with support from allies like the Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress and the DMK. However, the alliance is still far short of the number needed to attain a majority. 

Amidst this, Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu have pledged their support to Narendra Modi and NDA.

But the INDIA leaders have been hinting that they can form a government with the the latest remarks by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who said after an alliance meeting on Thursday that the I.N.D.I.A bloc will take the necessary steps at an appropriate time to "realise the people's desire not to be ruled by the BJP", the report noted.

'Illegally & Undemocratically Formed Govt': Mamata Banerjee

The TMC chief stressed that her party will not be attending Modi's oath-taking ceremony on Sunday.

"We cannot give them best wishes as they are forming a government illegally and undemocratically. They will try and break parties again. But they will break from within as many people are unhappy... We have not received an invite for the swearing-in ceremony and we will not go," the report quoted her as saying on the oath-taking ceremony on June 9.