Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Trinamool Congress Chief and West Bengal Chief Minister has announced that her party will be contesting Lok Sabha Elections 2024 in the state 'alone'. On Wednesday, taking a dig at Congress, the TMC leader said she had no discussions with them regarding seat sharing in West Bengal. "I have always said that in Bengal, we will fight alone. I am not concerned about what will be done in the country but we are a secular party and in Bengal, we will alone defeat BJP," Banerjee said.
She however remained committed to the opposition I.N.D.I.A-bloc. "I am a part of the INDIA alliance. Rahul Gandhi's Nyay Yatra is passing through our state but we have not been informed about it," the TMC chief said.
On Tuesday, Banerjee criticised the Congress for causing delay in discussions for seat-sharing in West Bengal, citing "unjustified" demand for 10-12 Lok Sabha constituencies when her party was willing to share only two, as reported by news agency PTI. Banerjee conveyed the stance during a closed-door organisational meeting of the party's unit of Birbhum.
During the internal meeting, she urged party leaders to gear up for the electoral battle, emphasising the need for the TMC's triumph in both the Lok Sabha seats from the district. A senior TMC leader, preferring anonymity, shared insights of the meeting, and stated, "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," as quoted by PTI. West Bengal has 42 Lok Sabha seats.
The West Bengal CM urged district leaders to prepare for fighting alone to win both the parliamentary seats from Birbhum, TMC sources told PTI. "Mamata didi told us to prepare to fight in both the seats from the district," the TMC leader said, as quoted by PTI.
Banerjee's remark at the party's internal meeting comes a day after she, at a public meeting, batted for the idea of regional leaders spearheading the fight against the Bharatiya Janata Party in specific regions, suggesting that Congress can independently contest 300 Lok Sabha seats.