Kolkata:
After conquering mount DMK, the Congress faces another uphill task - that of finding a seat sharing formula acceptable to the Trinamool Congress for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections.
The Trinamool Congress has given the Congress a list of 58 seats that it is willing to give the Congress for the polls based on the civic polls results of 2010. Party sources have told NDTV that Mamata is in no mood to relent beyond 60 seats.
The list, according to sources, is not acceptable to the Congress which wants to contest 98 of the 294 Assembly seats which was the formula in the Lok Sabha polls of 2009. The two are also at odds over who gets the winnable seats.
According to sources, Congress wants some seats in and around Kolkata. But Trinamool says no. Congress is refusing to give any seats to Trinamool in Malda district, only one in North Dinajpur and a maximum of three in Murshidabad.
Congress is also repeating what Rahul Gandhi said last year: "We want to partner with Mamata Banerjee. But we will not do so if we are not respected."
Last week, Mamata had sounded confident about seat sharing with the Congress.
"There is already an alliance. As for seats, let them discuss. From our side we are ready. There shouldn't be any problem," Mamata had said.
Today, her party leaders also sounded positive. "The alliance is there. Don't worry, there will be no problem with seats," Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee said.
But Manash Bhuiyan, the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) leader, has been camping in Delhi for the last few days trying to bridge the gap between expectation and reality.
Congress is expected to begin formal seat-sharing talks with the Trinamool Congress within a week. Elections in West Bengal will take place from April 18 to May 10 in six phases.
The CPM will announce its candidate list on Sunday. Trinamool had hoped to beat them at it. But, given the deadlock on seats, that now looks unlikely.
The Trinamool Congress has given the Congress a list of 58 seats that it is willing to give the Congress for the polls based on the civic polls results of 2010. Party sources have told NDTV that Mamata is in no mood to relent beyond 60 seats.
The list, according to sources, is not acceptable to the Congress which wants to contest 98 of the 294 Assembly seats which was the formula in the Lok Sabha polls of 2009. The two are also at odds over who gets the winnable seats.
According to sources, Congress wants some seats in and around Kolkata. But Trinamool says no. Congress is refusing to give any seats to Trinamool in Malda district, only one in North Dinajpur and a maximum of three in Murshidabad.
Congress is also repeating what Rahul Gandhi said last year: "We want to partner with Mamata Banerjee. But we will not do so if we are not respected."
Last week, Mamata had sounded confident about seat sharing with the Congress.
"There is already an alliance. As for seats, let them discuss. From our side we are ready. There shouldn't be any problem," Mamata had said.
Today, her party leaders also sounded positive. "The alliance is there. Don't worry, there will be no problem with seats," Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee said.
But Manash Bhuiyan, the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) leader, has been camping in Delhi for the last few days trying to bridge the gap between expectation and reality.
Congress is expected to begin formal seat-sharing talks with the Trinamool Congress within a week. Elections in West Bengal will take place from April 18 to May 10 in six phases.
The CPM will announce its candidate list on Sunday. Trinamool had hoped to beat them at it. But, given the deadlock on seats, that now looks unlikely.
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