The Congress leaders in West Bengal have argued that any alliance with the TMC will be disastrous for the party in the state due to the “in-built incompatibility” of both the parties.
After deciding to contest alone in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress is now mulling over fighting solo in West Bengal for the Lok Sabha polls 2019, according to The Economic Times.
The Congress was snubbed by the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which are contesting together for the upcoming general elections from Uttar Pradesh. Following this, the party announced to go solo in the state.
According to the report, a majority of senior state Congress leaders are in favour of the party going on its own in the state which is currently ruled by the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The leaders, who are in talks with Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other All India Congress Committee (AICC) representatives on the party’s election strategy, have argued that any alliance with the TMC will be disastrous for the state Congress due to the “in-built incompatibility” of both.
The Congress leaders in West Bengal have specified three arguments against considering an alliance with the TMC in the state, the report stated. First, they are angry with Banerjee’s act of intruding into the traditional Congress bases of Murshidabad, North Dinajpur and Malda districts, and think that the party should make efforts to protect its bastions.
Secondly, the leaders feel that any TMC-Congress alliance in West Bengal would place the BJP in the position of occupying the Opposition in the state, wresting that position from the battered CPM-led Left Front.
And thirdly, a soft attitude of the Congress towards the TMC will decline the enthusiasm of the party workers, who are facing tough times due to TMC’s expansionist drive.
Considering the views of the state party leaders, the AICC has decided to “go slow” on the alliance talks in the West Bengal, the report suggested.
