Mamata rules out alliance with Congress in state

The Trinamool Congress has slammed the door shut on any alliance with the Congress in West Bengal for the Lok Sabha election, with party chief and State Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee adding that the future of a national alliance would be considered after the election.

“I had no discussions with the Congress party or anyone else. We had given a proposal, which they had refused from the start. Since then, our party has decided that we will fight alone in West Bengal,” Ms. Banerjee told media persons.

The TMC has expressed frustration with the seat-sharing talks, where it has offered two seats to the Congress, which had demanded six. Of the 42 MPs West Bengal sends to the Lok Sabha, just two — from the Baharampur and Malda Dakshin seats — are currently from the Congress; 23 are from the TMC.

The Congress continued to cling to hope for a way forward in the discussions with the TMC, with communications chief Jairam Ramesh stressing that both parties were engaged in a fight against the BJP.

Ms. Banerjee also expressed her displeasure that the Congress had not informed her that its ongoing Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra would enter West Bengal. “Even as a matter of courtesy, they didn’t tell me that they were coming to my State. I am part of INDIA alliance,” she said. The Congress yatra is scheduled to enter the State on January 25.