Kolkata:
With strained ties between the Congress and the Trinamool out in the open, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee hit out at the Congress today saying, she has always worked alone and the Congress is free to leave the alliance. However, the Congress downplayed the alleged row, saying these things happen in a coalition.
"These things happen in a coalition. Disagreements happen but we should not be overaggressive. The issues are resolved through talks," said Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
Congress clarified their stand, after the Trinamool chief on Saturday once again accused the party of working in tandem with the Left against her government in West Bengal.
"The Congress and the CPM are working together," said Ms Banerjee at a press conference in Kolkata.
"If Congress feels they can go with CPI-M, they can do it. Door is open. We can go alone," she added.
In a scathing attack on the Congress, Ms Banerjee said, "The Congress interfered with federal structure and included Lokayukta in Lokpal Bill. The Congress is worried because we decided to contest assembly polls in UP and Manipur."
"The Congress is spreading canard against Trinamool Congress because we opposed FDI in retail and petrol price hike," she said.
The already tensed relation between Ms Banerjee and the Congress after the rows over the FDI, the pension bill and the Lokpal, reached a boiling point earlier this week over the West Bengal chief minister seeking to rename Indira Bhavan, a building named after the former Congress Prime Minister, in Kolkata's Salt Lake. The Youth Congress held a demonstration in protest, following which Ms Banerjee lashed out.
"Congress is protesting against renaming Indira Bhavan but they never protested when Indira Bhavan became Jyoti Bhavan, CPM's party office, during Jyoti Basu's regime for 34 years. Every day they are working with the CPM to block roads. Together they are slamming us every day, but I have never used strong words against Manmohan ji or Sonia ji," Ms Banerjee said a few days back.
However, the state Congress had reacted angrily to Ms Banerjee's allegations, saying Trinamool was the 'B-team' of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left Front.
"We are being constantly blamed as the B-team of the CPI-M. But it is Trinamool which has been on the same boat with BJP on the issue of FDI in retail. They (Trinamool), with BJP and the Left, had opposed the FDI in retail, although they are our alliance partners. In the case of the Lokpal Bill also, Trinamool MPs in Rajya Sabha took the same tone as that of CPI-M MP Sitaram Yechury," said Deepa Dasmunsi, the Congress MP from Raiganj in North Bengal.
Meanwhile, the Left speaking on the tension between the Trinamool and the Congress, says Ms Banerjee is weighing her options ahead of next Lok Sabha elections.
"In the wake of the UPA elections, Mamata Banerjee is weighing the strength of the BJP and the Congress and trying to find out what is going to come out and for the next round of Lok Sabha elections. She will decide accordingly because there's no principle, when Congress and Trinamool combined together; there was no point of agreement. When we supported the Congress-led UPA govt at Centre, it was based on a communal programme and now the Congress is moving away with the communal programme, there's no track and now after the failure in the economic front and so much of corruption, I think congress is fit for Trinamool, not for CPI(M)," said CPI(M)leader Mohd Salim.
"These things happen in a coalition. Disagreements happen but we should not be overaggressive. The issues are resolved through talks," said Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
Congress clarified their stand, after the Trinamool chief on Saturday once again accused the party of working in tandem with the Left against her government in West Bengal.
"The Congress and the CPM are working together," said Ms Banerjee at a press conference in Kolkata.
"If Congress feels they can go with CPI-M, they can do it. Door is open. We can go alone," she added.
In a scathing attack on the Congress, Ms Banerjee said, "The Congress interfered with federal structure and included Lokayukta in Lokpal Bill. The Congress is worried because we decided to contest assembly polls in UP and Manipur."
"The Congress is spreading canard against Trinamool Congress because we opposed FDI in retail and petrol price hike," she said.
The already tensed relation between Ms Banerjee and the Congress after the rows over the FDI, the pension bill and the Lokpal, reached a boiling point earlier this week over the West Bengal chief minister seeking to rename Indira Bhavan, a building named after the former Congress Prime Minister, in Kolkata's Salt Lake. The Youth Congress held a demonstration in protest, following which Ms Banerjee lashed out.
"Congress is protesting against renaming Indira Bhavan but they never protested when Indira Bhavan became Jyoti Bhavan, CPM's party office, during Jyoti Basu's regime for 34 years. Every day they are working with the CPM to block roads. Together they are slamming us every day, but I have never used strong words against Manmohan ji or Sonia ji," Ms Banerjee said a few days back.
However, the state Congress had reacted angrily to Ms Banerjee's allegations, saying Trinamool was the 'B-team' of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left Front.
"We are being constantly blamed as the B-team of the CPI-M. But it is Trinamool which has been on the same boat with BJP on the issue of FDI in retail. They (Trinamool), with BJP and the Left, had opposed the FDI in retail, although they are our alliance partners. In the case of the Lokpal Bill also, Trinamool MPs in Rajya Sabha took the same tone as that of CPI-M MP Sitaram Yechury," said Deepa Dasmunsi, the Congress MP from Raiganj in North Bengal.
Meanwhile, the Left speaking on the tension between the Trinamool and the Congress, says Ms Banerjee is weighing her options ahead of next Lok Sabha elections.
"In the wake of the UPA elections, Mamata Banerjee is weighing the strength of the BJP and the Congress and trying to find out what is going to come out and for the next round of Lok Sabha elections. She will decide accordingly because there's no principle, when Congress and Trinamool combined together; there was no point of agreement. When we supported the Congress-led UPA govt at Centre, it was based on a communal programme and now the Congress is moving away with the communal programme, there's no track and now after the failure in the economic front and so much of corruption, I think congress is fit for Trinamool, not for CPI(M)," said CPI(M)leader Mohd Salim.
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